20 November 2012

News Story: Chinese vessel carried North Korean weapons to Syria


A number of South Korean media outlets have revealed a Chinese-flagged container vessel destined for Syria was stopped by South Korea in May after being found carrying missile components believed to be from North Korea. China said it will handle the incident, a seeming violation of UN Security Council resolutions.

Diplomatic officials in New York said South Korean authorities in May seized more than 445 graphite cylinders which could be used in the construction of missiles from the Chinese vessel Xin Yan Tai, in South Korea's port city of Busan. The shipment, which had been declared as lead pipes, was headed for a Syrian company called Electric Parts, a subsidiary of a North Korean trading firm. "It appears the cylinders were intended for Syria's missile program," an UN diplomat was quoted by Reuters as saying.

Read the full story at Want China Times