U.N. Links North Korea to Syria’s Chemical Weapons Program

U.N. Links North Korea to Syria’s Chemical Weapons Program
North Korean missile technicians have also been spotted working at known chemical weapons
and missile facilities inside Syria, according to the report, which was written by a panel of experts who looked at North Korea’s compliance with United Nations sanctions.
William Newcomb, who was a member of the United Nations panel of experts on North
Korea from 2011 to 2014, called the report “an important breakthrough.”
Since the start of the Syrian civil war in 2011, there have been suspicions
that North Korea was providing equipment and expertise to maintain the chemical weapons program of Syria’s president, Bashar al-Assad.
The report highlights the potential danger posed by any such trade between Syria
and North Korea, which could allow Syria to maintain its chemical weapons while also providing North Korea with cash for its nuclear and missile programs.
Though experts who viewed the report said the evidence it cited did not prove definitively
that there was current, continuing collaboration between North Korea and Syria on chemical weapons, they said it did provide the most detailed account to date of efforts to circumvent sanctions intended to curtail the military advancement of both countries.
UNITED NATIONS — North Korea has been shipping supplies to the Syrian government
that could be used in the production of chemical weapons, United Nations experts contend.
The possible chemical weapons components were part of at least 40 previously unreported shipments by North Korea to Syria between 2012 and 2017 of prohibited ballistic missile parts and materials
that could be used for both military and civilian purposes, according to the report, which has not been publicly released but which was reviewed by .