MOSCOW, May 5. /TASS/. The bill on tightening sanctions against North Korea passed by the US Congress, which envisages control over Russian ports, is absurd. By doing so, the United States just wants to draw attention to itself, Chairman of the Russian Federation Council’s Defense and Security Committee, Viktor Ozerov, said in an interview with TASS.
"This is a crazy idea. Russia will not allow this to happen. It’s an absurd idea, which does not have the slightest chance of being implemented," Ozerov asserted. "They (such bills - TASS) have no other purposes than drawing attention to themselves. I believe there are enough sober-minded people in both the US Congress and the Senate who will say that in public and, all the more so, will not vote (for this bill)," Ozerov stated.
Concerning the implementation of the previous sanctions against North Korea, the senator noted that Russia complies with all agreements. "If we talk about complying with the sanctions imposed on North Korea, Russia voted for them in the Security Council, without which they would have been illegitimate. Besides, the Russian president issued a special decree, which says that all federal government agencies, enterprises and organizations should not only comply with these sanctions in terms of goods and supplies to North Korea but also bans transit of goods added to the UN list through our territory," the senator said.
He noted that the new US legislation should be taken in stride. "I believe the bill’s authors have drawn attention to themselves. I do not see any provisions that should be analyzed," Ozerov concluded.
The US House of Representatives approved a bill on Thursday to tighten sanctions against North Korea. It provides for control over foreign vessels that have stayed in North Korea’s national sea or airspace over the past 365 days. The document also allows for the control over the activities of a number of ports in China, Iran, Syria’s Latakia and Tartus ports along with the Russian ports of Nakhodka, Vanino and the Vladivostok sea port in terms of their compliance with the restrictions imposed on North Korea.