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UN experts say North Korea missile landed in Ukraine’s Kharkiv
The debris from a missile that landed in the Ukrainian city of Kharkiv on Jan. 2 was from a North Korean Hwasong-11 series ballistic missile, United Nations sanctions monitors told a Security Council committee in a report seen by Reuters on Monday.
In the 32-page report, the U.N. sanctions monitors concluded that “debris recovered from a missile that landed in Kharkiv, Ukraine, on 2 January 2024 derives from a DPRK Hwasong-11 series missile” and is in violation of the arms embargo on North Korea.
Formally known as the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK), North Korea has been under U.N. sanctions for its ballistic missile and nuclear programs since 2006, and those measures have been strengthened over the years.
Three sanctions monitors traveled to Ukraine earlier this month to inspect the debris and found no evidence that the missile was made by Russia. They “could not independently identify from where the missile was launched, nor by whom.”
“Information on the trajectory provided by Ukrainian authorities indicates it was launched within the territory of the Russian Federation,” they wrote in an April 25 report to the Security Council’s North Korea sanctions committee.
“Such a location, if the missile was under control of Russian forces, would probably indicate procurement by nationals of the Russian Federation,” they said, adding that this would be a violation of the arms embargo imposed on North Korea in 2006.
The Russian and North Korean missions to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report by the sanctions monitors, Reuters reported.
The U.S. and others have accused North Korea of transferring weapons to Russia for use against Ukraine, which it invaded in February 2022. Both Moscow and Pyongyang have denied the accusations, but vowed last year to deepen military relations.
At a U.N. Security Council meeting in February, the U.S. accused Russia of launching DPRK-supplied ballistic missiles against Ukraine on at least nine occasions.
The U.N. monitors said the Hwasong-11 series ballistic missiles were first publicly tested by Pyongyang in 2019, Reuters reported.
Russia last month vetoed the annual renewal of the U.N. sanctions monitors – known as a panel of experts – that has for 15 years monitored enforcement of U.N. sanctions on North Korea over its nuclear and ballistic missile programs. The mandate for the current panel of experts will expire on Tuesday.
Within days of the Jan. 2 attack, the Kharkiv region prosecutor’s office showcased fragments of the missile to the media, saying it was different from Russian models and “this may be a missile which was supplied by North Korea.”
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Gunmen kill three foreigners in Bamyan
Three foreign nationals and one Afghan were killed when gunmen opened fire in Afghanistan’s central Bamyan province on Friday, the Interior Ministry said.
Abdulmatin Qane, the spokesman of the Ministry of Interior, said that three Afghans and four foreigners were injured in the shooting.
He added that four people were arrested in connection with the incident.
Qani did not specify which country the foreigners belonged to.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
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China and Pakistan call for inclusive ‘political framework’ and ‘moderate policies’ in Afghanistan
According to the statement, Wang and Dar called for concerted efforts from the international community to help Afghanistan address challenges in areas such as the humanitarian situation and economic development.
“The two sides agreed to strengthen communication and coordination on the Afghanistan issue,” the statement read.
“They called for concerted efforts of the international community to help Afghanistan properly address challenges in such areas as the humanitarian situation and economic development, and encourage Afghanistan to build an inclusive political framework, adopt moderate policies, pursue good-neighborliness, and firmly combat terrorism, including not allowing its territory to be used for terrorist acts.
“Both sides agreed to play a positive and constructive role in helping Afghanistan achieve stable development and integrate into the international community,” the statement read.
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Talks underway to ditch the US dollar in Afghan-Iran transactions
Negotiations are ongoing between Afghanistan and Iran to sideline the US dollar in bilateral transactions, the deputy governor of the Central Bank of Iran (CBI) said this week.
According to media reports, Mohsen Karimi, the head of the CBI, said talks are ongoing between the two countries for the implementation of “offshore rial” in Afghanistan.
Karimi said the “offshore rial” is used with the aim of supporting the economic activity and exporters of the private sector of the country.
Recently, CBI Governor Mohammad Reza Farzin announced that Tehran plans to use the “offshore rial” for trade with Russia, Afghanistan and Iraq. He also said at the time that the idea of ditching the US dollar has produced positive results.
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