China’s enforcement of UN sanctions with regards to North Korea’s maritime sector continues to be patchy, allowing a UN-sanctioned ship into its waters and a Hong Kong company to take ownership of a DPRK oil tanker.

While Washington has called on countries in the region to strictly enforce UN resolutions, Beijing’s maritime sanctions enforcement practices often lag behind the letter of the UN’s restrictions.

And although Beijing often says it is fully implementing international restrictions during its regular Foreign Ministry press briefings, cases like that of the Hua Fu cast doubt