Japan Seizes Nuclear - Related n. Korean cargo 일본, 북 수상한 거래 안보리 넘긴다

Japan says it has caught North Korea in the act of arms trading. The Japanese government believes it has secured evidence the Kim Jong-un regime was helping Myanmar with its nuclear program. Tokyo says the case will be reported to the UN Security Council. Hwang Sung-hee has the details. The Japanese government has confirmed the Singaporean ship it seized last year was carrying nuclear-related materials from North Korea to Myanmar. Japan's Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga said Monday that the ship was carrying aluminum alloy an extremely strong material used to make nuclear centrifuges. The ship was reportedly heading to Myanmar via China and was making a port call in Tokyo when it was seized last August. Myanmar was suspected of pursuing military and nuclear cooperation with the North during its years of junta rule which came to an end in 2011. This is the first of such seizure by Japan since a law was passed in 2010, allowing the country to inspect suspicious ships traveling to or from North Korea. Fresh UN sanctions passed earlier this month also require member countries to search cargo linked to Pyongyang's nuclear program. The Japanese government says it will report the case to the UN Security Council. The Council is expected to form a team of experts to monitor whether North Korea is following the new UN sanctions that were implemented as a result of Pyongyang's third nuclear test last month. Meanwhile, Washington's top treasury sanctions envoy David Cohen will arrive in Seoul on Tuesday as part of his East Asia trip that is focused on penalizing North Korea for its latest provocation. Cohen will meet with officials from Seoul's foreign ministry on Wednesday to discuss ways to better implement UN sanctions against Pyongyang. Hwang Sung-hee, Arirang News.