Malaysia says intercepted N Korean arms for
KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia intercepted and returned a shipment of North Korean military communications equipment sent to Thailand in 2011, the country’s police chief said on Monday, amid growing scrutiny of the southeast Asian nation’s dealings with North Korea.
The comments come after Malaysia’s foreign ministry this month rejected suggestions it may have violated UN sanctions on North Korea.
Ties between the two countries have been strained since the February 13 murder of the estranged halfbrother of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un at the airport in the Malaysian capital of Kuala Lumpur.
On Monday, Inspector-General of Police Khalid Abu Bakar said authorities at Port Klang outside Kuala Lumpur had seized 250 kg (551 lb) of the equipment, manufactured by Glocom, identified in a Reuters report as running an arms operation out of Malaysia.
The shipment’s intended recipient, however, could not be traced and the equipment was returned to Pyongyang, Khalid told reporters at a news conference in the southern state of Johor, bordering Singapore.
“After investigations, the recipient in Thailand was found not to exist,” he said in a video recording of the conference. “So we blocked the shipment from entering Malaysia and from being sent to Thailand.” Last month, Reuters reported that North Korean intelligence ran an arms operation out of Malaysia called Glocom, using two front companies identified as International Global System and International Golden Services.
Glocom sold battlefield radio equipment in violation of United Nations sanctions, according to a UN report submitted to the Security Council. A 2009 resolution of the UN bans North Korea from exporting arms or related military equipment.
Reuters found that Glocom advertised more than 30 radio systems for “military and paramilitary” organisations on its Malaysian website, which was taken down late last year.
— Reuters