North Korea Has Not Stopped Its Nuclear Program, Violates UN Sanctions - Reports

Pyongyang has not stopped its nuclear and missile programs in violation of the United Nations sanctions, according to a UN report seen by Reuters.

The six-month report by independent experts monitoring the implementation of UN sanctions was submitted to the Security Council North Korea sanctions committee late on Friday, Reuters reported.

"(North Korea) has not stopped its nuclear and missile programs and continued to defy Security Council resolutions through a massive increase in illicit ship-to-ship transfers of petroleum products, as well as through transfers of coal at sea during 2018," the 149-page report said as quoted by Reuters.

The UN report seen by Reuters also said that North Korea was cooperating militarily with Syria and has been trying to sell weapons to Yemen's Houthis.

Moreover, according to the UN report cited by Reuters, North Korea also violated a textile ban by exporting more than $100 million in goods between October 2017 and March 2018 to China, Ghana, India, Mexico, Sri Lanka, Thailand, Turkey and Uruguay.

Earlier in the day, the US Mission to the UN submitted proposals to the Security Council for imposing new sanctions against North Korea.

The US State Department said in a press release on Friday that US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo during a meeting in Singapore with Chinese Foreign Minister Wang Yi emphasized the need to implement UN Security Council resolutions on North Korea.

"He [Pompeo] emphasized our shared commitment to the final, fully verified denuclearization of the DPRK [North Korea]… as well as the importance of continued implementation of all related UN Security Council Resolutions," the release said on Friday.

Last week, President Donald Trump said, however, during a speech in Granite City, Illinois, that North Korean leader Kim Jong-un was making great progress toward peace after the two leaders held their historic summit in Singapore on June 12.

Meanhwile, US Forces Korea Commander Gen. Vincent Brooks said earlier that the US has not recorded "a complete shutdown" of nuclear materials' production in North Korea. The commander also stressed there were still steps that "must be taken on the road to denuclearization."

In July, US Director of National Intelligence Daniel Coats said it was unlikely that North Korea will dismantle its nuclear program within a year. Coats referred to US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo who has previously said the complete destruction of North Korea's nuclear arsenal would take a long time.

North Korea has faced several rounds of sanctions over its nuclear and ballistic missile tests, conducted in violation of the UN Security Council’s resolutions. The restrictions have not been lifted yet despite easing tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

The Washington Post said on Monday citing unnamed officials familiar with the information that US intelligence agencies have seen signs that North Korea was developing new ICBMs including the type that could reach the United States mainland.