Background
In response to the nuclear test conducted by North Korea in September, China’s Ministry of Commerce, the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence, the China Atomic Energy Authority and General Administration of Customs jointly issued Announcement [2017] No. 9 (“Announcement No. 9“) on 25 January 2017. This was issued in conjunction with the U.N. Security Council Resolution 2321 (2016), adopted on November 30, 2016, to strengthen the U.N.’s sanctions regime against North Korea.
Announcement No. 9 builds upon the lists of items that China has already sanctioned from export to North Korea previously in Announcement [2016] No. 22 and Announcement [2013] No. 59.
Announcement No. 9 contains a detailed list of “dual-use” technologies, i.e., items that have both civilian and military uses, that are banned from export to North Korea, due to their connection to weapons of mass destruction and their delivery systems. The extensive list of items includes material such as chemicals and metal alloys, but also extends to computer software and technology relating to sensors, navigation systems, and submarines.
What Companies Can Expect
While China shares a close relationship with North Korea, it has appeared more willing to impose sanctions on North Korea in recent years in response to the growing threat of North Korea’s nuclear aspirations. These sanctions issued by China do not appear to be merely lip service, as they have also been accompanied with increasing reports of enforcement at the border. There may be further bans and increasing enforcement on exports to North Korea, and across more extensive categories of items should North Korea continue to defy the demands of the U.N. Security Council.
增列禁止向朝鲜出口的两用物项和技术清单 (2017-01-25)
http://www.mofcom.gov.cn/article/b/e/201701/20170102507933.shtml
关于增列禁止向朝鲜出口的两用物项和技术清单公告 (2016-06-14)
http://www.mofcom.gov.cn/article/b/c/201606/20160601338628.shtml
关于禁止向朝鲜出口的两用物项和技术清单公告 (2013-09-23)
http://www.mofcom.gov.cn/article/b/c/201309/20130900317772.shtml
