“With this seizure, we have significantly disrupted that cycle,” said Geoffrey S. Berman, the United States attorney in Manhattan. The Wise Honest is the second-largest cargo ship in Pyongyang’s fleet, he said, and the value of the ship is multiplied every time the North Koreans make shipments on it and evade sanctions. The United Nations Security Council has imposed five rounds of sanctions against North Korea since early 2016, when Pyongyang conducted its fourth nuclear test. China and others argued at the time that the sanctions would disproportionately affect ordinary North Koreans and could backfire. When Mr. Trump and Mr. Kim met in Vietnam in February, Mr. Kim wanted the United States to lift the sanctions that were directly affecting the nation’s civilian economy.

Source: International New York Times May 09, 2019 16:36 UTC