New Zealand's Defence Force announced on Tuesday that one of its long-range P-8A Poseidon reconnaissance aircraft observed what it suspects was North Korea violating international sanctions through a possible ship-to-ship transfer of illicit goods over the Yellow Sea and East China Sea.

The exchange was spotted among 35 'vessels of interest' while the aircraft was patrolling for potential North Korean breaches of United Nations sanctions at sea, according to the Defence Force.

Air Commodore Andy Scott, New Zealand's Air Component Commander, stated: 'The evidence captured of activities that were occurring in the East China and Yellow Seas allows authorities to take action against ships that may still be operating in contravention of UN resolutions.'

New Zealand did not disclose what goods were transferred in the exchange on the high seas. However, it noted that North Korea typically uses ships to smuggle refined petroleum imports and to export coal, iron ore, and sand, which help fund its nuclear and ballistic missile programs.

North Korea has been under UN sanctions since 2006 after conducting its first nuclear weapons test. Sanctions were significantly expanded in 2016 and 2017 to include a range of exports and ship-to-ship transfers.

Despite restrictions, North Korea continues to trade with a handful of countries. Its main customer is China, but it has also been known to sell weapons to Iran and Russia in exchange for oil or hard currency.

New Zealand has been a member of the US-led Pacific Security Maritime Exchange since 2018, which monitors North Korea's violation of international sanctions through smuggling and illicit maritime activity.

Source: www.aljazeera.com