NK sanctions set to be exempted for railway inspection

By Kim Bo-eun

The U.N. Security Council (UNSC) sanctions on North Korea are set to be exempted to enable inspections of North Korean railways to take place.

The government requested the exemptions to the UNSC Sanctions Committee on North Korea earlier this week, and a process is underway on the matter, according to the foreign ministry.

While the ministry declined to comment on details, it is likely the government has requested an exemption on Resolution 2397, which bans the entry of petroleum into North Korea.

This was seen to be the resolution that prevented the U.N. Command (UNC) from granting approval for the plan to inspect the North's railways, because it involves a South Korean train carrying personnel and supplies including oil going to the North.

For the exemption to be approved, a consensus needs to be reached among 15 UNSC member states taking part in the sanctions committee on North Korea. Key states such as China and Russia are in support of granting exemptions. The U.S. up until recently had been against the idea, but at a recent meeting with South Korea expressed its "full and strong" support for the rail inspection plan. With U.S. support, the exemptions are bound to be approved.

If the exemption is granted in the coming days, as expected, inspections on the North's railway sections may begin this month, and enable a groundbreaking ceremony on connecting the rail networks of the South and North to be held within the year as planned.

The leaders of the two Koreas agreed at their third summit in September to hold the groundbreaking ceremony within the year, and it was agreed at a high-level meeting the following month to hold the ceremony in late November or early December.

The plan for the railway inspections had been delayed for months, however, due to a stall in negotiations over North Korea's denuclearization.

It has been the U.S. stance that progress in Pyongyang's denuclearization and inter-Korean affairs should go hand-in-hand. U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo affirmed this stance recently.

While the first exemption on sanctions on North Korea is set to be made for an inter-Korean economic project, further progress on inter-Korean economic projects may be difficult if North Korea fails to make progress on denuclearization.

Pyongyang and Washington have yet to hold a postponed high-level meeting to discuss denuclearization and corresponding measures, which would set grounds for a second summit between its leaders.