Abstract This article outlines United Nations sanctions against North Korea following that country’s first nuclear weapons test in 2006 with a particular focus on maritime interdiction. The consistency of United Nations resolutions with the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (LOSC) is then discussed. A case study of how Australia has sought to implement United Nations sanctions on North Korea in its domestic legislation, in keeping with the United Nations Charter, is then provided. Australia’s experience of enforcement actions related to North Korea are then reviewed. Australia’s contribution to the cooperative international effort in maritime surveillance and enforcement in order to deter and prevent sanctions avoidance at sea in the complex operating environment of the East China Sea are then reviewed.
Abstract This introduction presents a Special Section of the Korean Journal of International and Comparative Law , which evaluates the domestic implementation of United Nations Security Council maritime sanctions against North Korea across five jurisdictions: South Korea, the United States, China, Canada, and Australia. While there is a strong doctrinal consensus that vessels violating Resolution 2397 forfeit their right of innocent passage under UNCLOS, practical enforcement remains heavily fractured. The articles highlight critical vulnerabilities caused by North Korea’s highly adaptive maritime evasion tactics—such as AIS spoofing, flag hopping, and illicit ship-to-ship transfers—alongside structural lags in domestic laws. Following the 2024 dissolution of the UN Panel of Experts, the sanctions regime faces an enforcement void. The contributors offer clear, targeted legislative and institutional reform pathways to restore the integrity of global non-proliferation monitoring.
Abstract Guided by the observations and recommendations of the UN Special Procedures, this contribution aims to shed light on certain aspects of the current human rights situation in the Republic of Korea and Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, as well as the prospects for achieving comprehensive peace and human rights fulfillment in the future. After a brief overview of the nature and functioning of the Special Procedures of the United Nations—in particular, of the Working Group on Enforced and Involuntary Disappearance and of the Special Rapporteur for the promotion of truth, justice, reparation and guarantees of non-recurrence—it examines how these bodies have addressed issues related to transitional justice and enforced disappearances in the peninsula. It concludes by suggesting a series of measures to better protect human rights in this context.
Abstract Resolution 2397(2017) unanimously adopted by the UN Security Council on 22 December 2017 significantly tightened the sanctions imposed against North Korea including by severely restricting fuel imports and other trade. To counter Pyongyang’s evasion tactics, the Resolution authorized Member States to seize, inspect and impound vessels in their ports or in their territorial sea reasonably suspected of violating Resolution 2397(2017) and other UNSC resolutions. The Security Council called on all Member States to redouble their efforts to fully implement the new measures adopted in Resolution 2397(2017) as well as those imposed by earlier resolutions. In light of this important obligation weighing on all UN Member States, this article will consider how Canada contributes to the enforcement of Resolution 2397(2017) and other UNSC resolutions, specifically through maritime interdiction, at the international and domestic levels.
Abstract Beyond simply promoting e-commerce, digital trade now defines the rules of data governance, security, and new technologies. As Korea and Mongolia negotiate the Economic Partnership Agreement (EPA), a significant difference emerges in how to design digital norms in a situation where digital maturity between the two partners is significantly different. This paper explores ways to optimize and integrate digital trade provisions in the Korea-Mongolia EPA. We use a comparative analysis focusing on specific regulatory issues found in the Mongolia-Japan EPA, the Korea-Ecuador SECA, and the Korea-UAE CEPA. It argues that a full transplant of high-standard norms is not desirable given Mongolia’s current institutional environment. Instead, we propose a ‘step-by-step hybrid framework’. This model combines binding basic norms with conditional obligations for sensitive areas and emphasizes institutional cooperation. Ultimately, this approach balances bilateral cooperation with regulatory autonomy, offering a practical roadmap for asymmetric digital trade negotiations.
