North Korea has purchased at least $ 640 million worth of luxury goods from China in 2017, according to South Korean lawmakers

SEOUL (Reuters) – North Korea imported from China for at least $ 640 million worth of luxury goods last year, in violation of US sanctions banning such exchanges on the nuclear and missile programs of the North Korea, announced Monday a South Korean legislator.

The United States has called for the strict enforcement of sanctions as part of a "maximum pressure" campaign to which Washington credits North Korea with bringing a situation of impoverishment to the United States. the negotiating table.

But the campaign seems to have run out of steam since North Korea suspended its nuclear tests and missiles, and its leader, Kim Jong Un, pledged progress toward denuclearization at the North Korea-US summit in January. June, and that China and Russia have called for more flexible sanctions.

"Kim bought sumptuous items from China and other places, like a seaplane, not only for his own family, but also for expensive musical instruments, high-quality TVs, sedans, alcoholic beverages, watches and fur as gifts for the elites who support his regime, "Opposition MP Yoon Sang-hyun said in a statement.

"With the growing loophole, Kim could soon reach his goal of neutralizing sanctions without giving up the nuclear weapon."

Last year, North Korea spent at least $ 640 million in luxury goods from China, according to Yoon.

China does not provide figures on customs. Yoon compiled the data on the basis of a list of banned items manufactured by Seoul in accordance with the resolution passed in 2009 by the United States.

The Beijing Customs Agency did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Beijing said it strictly adheres to international sanctions against North Korea.

The volume of luxury trade in 2017 was down from the peak of $ 800 million in 2014, but was only 3.8% lower than the $ 666.4 million recorded in 2016, according to Yoon.

Luxury goods accounted for 17.8 percent of all North Korea's imports from China last year, for a total of $ 3.7 billion, Yoon added.

Purchases of electronic products such as high-end televisions accounted for more than half of total transactions ($ 340 million), followed by cars ($ 204 million) and spirits ($ 35 million).

Trade between China and North Korea between January and August 2006 reached $ 1.51 billion, down 57.8% from the previous year, the Chinese Customs Office announced last month .

Yoon's analysis also shows that North Korea has spent more than $ 4 billion on luxury purchases in China since Kim's takeover in late 2011.

Yoon accused China of easing sanctions and criticized South Korea's recent request to exempt exemptions from the United Kingdom and the United States to boost inter-Korean economic cooperation.

Asked Monday on the possibility of a disagreement with the United States over sanctions, a senior South Korean presidential official said the two countries "would finally be on the same track" in terms of denuclearization, although there may be a "procedural difference".

Last week, Singapore accused a North Korean citizen and three companies of providing banned luxury items to North Korea. The charges relate to hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of perfumes, wines and watches, court documents seen by the Reuters show.