Since the outbreak of the war in Ukraine, China has assured that it does not supply weapons to Russia and has called for “dialogue”. Certainly. But according to the Reuters news agency, Beijing accepts that a Russian cargo ship involved in North Korean arms transfers to Russia has been moored in one of its ports for weeks.
The “Angara”, a container ship measuring 126.84 m long and 20 m wide, flying the Russian flag, is currently, according to the ship tracking site Marine Traffic, moored at the Zhoushan Xinya shipyard in Zhejiang. , the largest boat repair and maintenance site in the country.
According to satellite images from recent months, analyzed by the British think tank Royal United Services Institute (RUSI), he has been there since February 9, after having made numerous comings and goings that are dubious to say the least. According to RUSI, the “Angara” has transported thousands of containers supposed to contain North Korean munitions since August 2023 to Russian ports.
At least 11 deliveries
RUSI claims that before arriving in China on February 9, the vessel had been docked in North Korean and Russian ports in January with its transponder turned off. The tracking device was briefly turned on, likely for security reasons, while navigating a busy section of the Korea Strait en route to China. He stopped transmitting his location again shortly after arriving in China.
The ship, listed on the list of sanctioned entities by the United States Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) since May 2022, has, according to RUSI, made at least eleven deliveries between the North Korean port of Rajin and the Russian ports from last August.
Asked by Reuters, a spokesperson for the US State Department said it was aware of “credible, open-Source reports” that the “Angara” was currently docked in a Chinese port and that it had raised the issue with Chinese authorities. “We call on all member states to fulfill their obligations under United Nations Security Council Resolution 2397,” the official said, referring to a United Nations resolution that restricts trade with North Korea.
A presence difficult for China to ignore?
Despite its declared neutrality, China has been criticized several times by Washington for its support for Russia. As Ukraine comes under renewed Russian attack and runs out of munitions, U.S. officials have issued increasingly stark warnings about what they see as China’s help rebuilding the Russian military after its initial setbacks against Ukrainian troops. Just last week, Secretary of State Antony Blinken criticized China’s support for Russia’s defense industry, saying Beijing was currently the largest contributor to Moscow’s war, thanks to its supply of critical components for the armament. Blinken is due to travel to Beijing in the coming days.
Questioned by the press agency, the Chinese embassy in Washington and the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs claimed to be unaware of this affair. The Chinese government “always opposes unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction that have no basis in international law or a mandate from the Security Council,” the embassy said.
Joseph Byrne, a researcher at RUSI, believes that the Chinese government cannot ignore that the container ship sanctioned by the United States is currently anchored in one of its shipyards. And that “if he lets it leave port without inspection and newly repaired, it will show that China is unlikely to take any action against these Russian ships.” An additional mark of support for its neighbor and ally.
