Putin Says Trump Listens to Him on North Korea

[Swordsmyth]

[Zippyjuan]

https://www.washingtonpost.com/world...=.cbcfae20ac60

How Russia quietly undercuts sanctions intended to stop North Korea’s nuclear program

Russian smugglers are scurrying to the aid of North Korea with shipments of petroleum and other vital supplies that could help that country weather harsh new economic sanctions, U.S. officials say in an assessment that casts further doubt on whether financial measures alone can force dictator Kim Jong Un to abandon his nuclear weapons program.

The spike in Russian exports is occurring as China — by far North Korea’s biggest trading partner — is beginning to dramatically ratchet up the economic pressure on its troublesome neighbor in the face of provocative behavior such as last week’s test of a powerful nuclear bomb.

Official documents and interviews point to a rise in tanker traffic this spring between North Korean ports and Vladivostok, the far-eastern Russian city near the small land border shared by the two countries. With international trade with North Korea increasingly constrained by U.N. sanctions, Russian entrepreneurs are seizing opportunities to make a quick profit, setting up a maze of front companies to conceal *transactions and launder payments, according to U.S. law enforcement officials who monitor sanction-busting activity.

More at link.

[Raginfridus]

Sanctions only lead to war, there shouldn't be any in the first place.

[merkelstan]