China provides berth for Russian ship believed to carry North Korean weapons – Reuters

The Angara ship, which has transported thousands of containers believed to contain North Korean munitions to Russian ports since August 2023, has been anchored at a Chinese shipyard in the country's eastern province of Zhejiang since February.

Source: Reuters reports this with reference to satellite images obtained.

Details: The images show the Angara moored at the shipyard of China's largest private ship repair company, Zhoushan Xinya Shipyard in Zhejiang. The ship was identified by its unique Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponder, which was briefly switched on, presumably for security reasons, while passing through a busy section of the Korean Strait on its way to China.

The British think tank Royal United Services Institute (RUSI) said that the Angara was transporting North Korean munitions to Russian ports.

A US State Department spokesperson said that it was aware of "credible open-source reports" that the Angara was now docked in a Chinese port and that it had raised the issue with Chinese authorities.

"We call on all member states to fulfil their obligations under UNSCR 2397," the spokesman said, referring to the UN resolution that restricts trade with North Korea and requires UN member states to deregister any vessels involved in illegal activities.

Background:

• US Secretary of State Antony Blinken is expected to warn China that the US will take punitive steps, which may include sanctions on Chinese financial institutions, unless China stops sending military technologies to Russia.
• The US is drafting sanctions that could cut off some Chinese banks from the global financial system to force Beijing to stop trade support for the Russian military industry.
• The European Commission will suggest sanctions against the vessels delivering North Korean military equipment to Russia, as well as tankers that violate the G7 countries’ price cap on Russian oil.

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