Amb. Emanuel: North Korea-Russia Arms Talks Show Embargo ‘Effective and Working’ But It’s Not ‘Seal-Proof’

During an interview aired on Tuesday’s broadcast of CNN International’s “Amanpour,” U.S. Ambassador to Japan Rahm Emanuel stated that North Korea and Russia moving on an arms deal “does mean the embargo is having an impact. Is it seal-proof? No.” And that while the move is “not welcome,” “it is a sign that the embargo is effective and working.”

Emanuel said, [relevant remarks begin around 2:50] “I do think, at a fundamental level, while not helpful, not good for the embargo and the isolation we want of Russia, Russia’s attempt at building an empire has become dependent on North Korea. I think that says it all.”

He added, “It’s not welcome. But it’s a clear sign when Russia, ‘an empire,’ a nuclear power, is dependent on North Korea for the very weapons. It does mean the embargo is having an impact. Is it seal-proof? No. But it does mean that this has to — you have to think about it this way, Russia had to cross a lot of psychological, political, and economic kind of thresholds to get to a place that they had to publicly — they haven’t yet acknowledged it, but we have done our job to expose it — that they are dependent on North Korea. There [are] hundreds of countries in the world, that this is what the Russian empire, the endeavor of this war, it has a political implication at home for Russia, for Putin, specifically, that you are now not the sponsor of North Korea, North Korea is your weapons supplier. Think of the flip of that, what that means politically, diplomatically, economically, and the consequences of that. Now, it is not welcome, but it is a sign that the embargo is effective and working.”

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