The US wants to boost its “maximum pressure” campaign against North Korea at an international meeting on Tuesday despite not inviting China and Russia, which have denigrated the “cold war thinking” behind the gathering.
Senior US officials want the Vancouver gathering of 20 foreign ministers, which the US is hosting jointly with Canada, to support a port-entry ban on vessels that break international sanctions by trading oil with North Korea. The US has previously failed to name publicly sanction-breaking vessels through the UN Security Council.
“We need to drive up the consequences for any vessels that are engaging in this kind of activity,” said Brian Hook, director of policy planning at the US state department. He said the meeting would assess gaps in the US-led campaign that is seeking to squeeze Pyongyang into reversing its nuclear weapons programme.