China turns a blind eye as North Korea evades sanctions

After a brief lull due to the COVID-19 pandemic, North Korea is carrying out large-scale smuggling operations off the coast of China in violation of U.N. sanctions, importing oil and selling coal and sand to keep its economy afloat, according to experts and current and former Western officials. Much of the sanctions-busting operations rely on front companies registered in China and take place within China's heavily patrolled territorial waters, where Chinese radar and coast guard vessels closely track commercial shipping traffic, experts said. China has made major investments in its navy and coast guard in recent years, and it seems improbable that Beijing is not able to detect or prevent the North Korean shipments that often employ large barges, said Neil Watts, who served on a U.N. panel investigating North Korea's sanctions violations.