SEOUL: South Korea’s foreign ministry has said that North Korea has been removed as an observer of a regional anti-money laundering group because of its lack of engagement and failure to fulfill obligations.
According to Yonhap, the unanimous decision has been taken at the 26th general assembly of the Asia Pacific Group on Money Laundering (APG). The forum, formed in 1997, is an intergovernmental forum committed to effectively executing the global standards against money laundering, as well as combating the financing of terrorism and the proliferation of arms of mass destruction.
Presently, the APG consists of 42 member nations, including the US, China and Japan. South Korea has joined the group in 1998 while N Korea obtained the APG observer position in July 2014.
Yonhap reported that the APG had warned North Korea that no engagement in the group would deprive the government of its observer status, and the disqualification was permitted by the members as the North Korea did not even meet the minimum needs to maintain its status. South Korean media reported that the APG has found that the North Korea has not engaged in the APG activities for the last six years.
