Statement by H.E. Sanita Pavļuta-Deslandes, PR of Latvia to the United Nations at UN Security Council Briefing on Non-proliferation/the DPRK
New York, 30 April 2026
Thank you, Mr. President.
I would like to thank Under-Secretary General DiCarlo for her briefing and Mr. Byrne for his useful contribution, providing this Council with facts.
Latvia reiterates its strong condemnation of DPRK's nuclear and ballistic weapon programmes which violate multiple Security Council resolutions. And we express our regret that is has been two years since the 1718 Committee has been unable to properly function due to the disbandment of its Panel of Experts. The veto used by Russia was an example of its deliberate efforts to undermine the work of this Council. It was also an early precedent of backing regimes that are willing to support its own brutal aggression against Ukraine even if it means obstructing the work of this Council and its subsidiary organs.
The absence of a Panel of Experts for the 1718 Committee effectively means that the most thorough of UN Security Council sanction tools has been weakened through a lack of access to vital information. Fortunately, due to the joint efforts of states who have contributed to establishment of the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team, the international community continues to receive verified and reliable information that helps to bridge the present information gap.
Mr President,
It is critically important to remain informed about the situation surrounding the DPRK sanctions, especially considering the various efforts by the DPRK to evade and circumvent them, as the state remains one of the main threats to international peace and security. The DPRK continues to develop its illegal nuclear and ballistic missile programs, growing its illegal arsenal and testing new weapons systems, including cluster munitions, as recently reported. We reaffirm our robust commitment to the complete, verifiable, and irreversible denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula. In this regard, we appreciate the efforts made by the Republic of Korea to advance dialogue and we call on the DPRK to reciprocate in good-faith and to comply with its obligations under international law.
The DPRK has also provided significant support to the aggressor Russia, both in armaments, from munitions to missiles, as well as in manpower, with thousands of North Korean soldiers deployed in support of Russia’s imperial ambitions. This unlawful cooperation must cease and the DPRK must bear full accountability for its participation in this.
Mr President,
We must emphasize another illicit practice in common between Russia and the DPRK, which is the use of old and unsafe vessels flying a flag of a different nationality altogether, the “shadow fleet”, to evade sanctions. As expressed by many delegations earlier this week in the open debate on maritime security, shadow fleet vessels risk ecological disasters wherever they go with no accountability. The DPRK is using such vessels to circumvent the sanctions imposed by this Council, using fraudulent documentation, masking movements of ships and engaging in illicit ship-to-ship transfers, in order to finance its illegal weapons programme.
This is unacceptable and we must be resolute in upholding this Council’s binding decisions. Latvia supports the listing of seven vessels for violating the DPRK sanctions regime, as proposed by the United States in late 2025, and we are open to considering additional listings if necessary.
And finally, we reiterate the urgent need to re-establish the Panel of Experts of the 1718 Committee for this Council and the Committee to carry out their full mandates.
I thank you!