Canadian charities operating in North Korea must pay close attention to Canadian sanctions.  These sanctions were recently tightened.

Canadian Economic Sanctions Update – 31 July 2009

Entry into force of the Regulations Amending the Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolution on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea

The Regulations Amending the Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolution on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (SOR/2009-232) were registered and entered into force on 30 July 2009.  The Regulations implement in Canadian domestic law the binding measures imposed against the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) in United Nations Security Council resolution 1874.  Resolution 1874 was adopted on June 12, 2009, in response to a nuclear test conducted by the DPRK on May 25, 2009, which violated Security Council resolution 1718 (2006), and missile activities that the Security Council determined constitute a clear threat to international peace and security.

The measures imposed by resolution 1874 strengthen and modify UN sanctions imposed against the DPRK in 2006 by:
•      expanding the arms embargo to include all arms and related materials, with the exception of the export, sale, supply, transfer or shipment of small arms and light weapons;
•      expanding the prohibition on the provision, to any person in the DPRK, of technical assistance related to arms and related materials;
•      creating a prohibition on financial transactions related to the provision, manufacture, maintenance or use of arms or related material;
•      expanding the list of sanctioned items, materials, equipment, goods and technology which could contribute to the DPRK’s nuclear-related, ballistic missile-related or other weapons of mass destruction-related programmes and activities; and
•      requiring States to prohibit the provision of refuelling and other services to DPRK vessels believed to contain sanctioned cargo.

The Regulations also give effect to changes recommended by the Standing Joint Committee for the Scrutiny of Regulations that are linguistic and technical in nature.

The Regulations Amending the Regulations Implementing the United Nations Resolution on the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea will be published in Part II of the Canada Gazette on 19 August 2009, but the Regulations are applicable prior to their publication from the date of registration.

The Canadian Economic Sanctions website has been updated with this information at the following link:
http://www.international.gc.ca/sanctions/korea-coree.aspx

For further information, please visit our website or contact: sanctions@international.gc.ca