A recent announcement about North Korea ratifying the United Nations Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime (UNCATOC) ought to be taken as a heads-up warning. Given the extent of Pyongyang’s deep involvement in transnational criminal activity, signing a convention the purpose of which is to eliminate such enterprise is outrageously ludicrous – an unmitigated farce.

After wading through the diplomatic and legalistic wording of the document, some interesting aspects come to light. Articles of the Convention address the distribution of drugs, governmental corruption, laundering money (which includes counterfeiting), and trafficking in people. Naturally, these topics are the core focus and the primary concern of such a document. However, equally important, especially with regard to North Korea, are the articles about cooperation, obstruction of justice, and the sharing of best practices.