At least half of 26 North Korea-linked vessels anchored near the DPRK port of Nampho in May 2021 likely returned from China laden with “humanitarian aid,” information contained in a forthcoming U.N. report shows, suggesting Pyongyang may have taken steps earlier this year to stem what eventually became a domestic “food crisis.”

But some of the vessels — shipping items like fertilizer, pesticides and rice — were said to have first exported sanctioned North Korean coal to Chinese waters before collecting their respective humanitarian cargoes, according to information provided by a Member State in an advanced draft of the midterm