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North Korea, which has been unable to officially buy luxury goods due to UN sanctions against North Korea, appears to be trying to import luxury goods through a third country.
According to an interim report by the expert panel published by the North Korean Sanctions Committee within the framework of the UN Security Council (Security Council) on the 28th (local time), North Korea has tried to import Mercedes limousines- Benz S-Class through third country companies this year. Luxury vehicles are classified as luxury goods according to the UN Security Council sanctions resolution, and exports to North Korea are prohibited.
How did luxury vehicles like Mercedes, Audi and Lexus used by North Korean leader Kim Jong-un get to North Korea? Vehicle manufacturers and sellers have clarified that “I have never exported to North Korea” or “did not know they were sold to North Korea.”
First of all, the Audi Q7 was photographed at the Masikryeong ski resort last December. This is Audi’s high-end sport utility vehicle (SUV). In the report, the expert panel said that the Pyongyang-registered Audi Q7 was “a ready vehicle for a very important person.” Audi expressed regret in this regard. Audi said in an investigation to the UN Panel of Experts, “We regret that the Audi vehicle has clearly violated the UN sanctions on North Korea,” and said that “Audi is interested in complying with the sanctions on North Korea.” .
Audi told a panel of experts that the vehicle was manufactured between 2012 and 2015, and that there is no information in the photo to specify the production location. Audi said: “Audi does not supply cars directly or indirectly to North Korea.”
Next is Toyota of Japan. President Kim directly drove an SUV, believed to be Toyota’s Lexus LX570, while surveying the north of the island of Hwanghae, which was recently hit by a flood. In the report, an expert panel noted that the model and top-ranking North Koreans are using Lexus’ luxury sedan, the LS460L. Toyota told a panel of experts that “the LS model was made in Japan between 2009 and 2012,” but “we have never produced bulletproof vehicles.” Toyota did not specifically mention the LX570 model.
Mercedes-Benz was also the subject of the expert panel’s attention. President Kim Jong-un appeared in a Mercedes-Maybach S600 Pullman Guard at the Panmunjom Inter-Korean Summit in 2018. Italian ‘European Cass’, who sold the vehicle to North Korea, explained: “I knew I was selling it to a Hong Kong company, but did not know it was selling it to North Korea. “
