The United Kingdom said the Royal Navy recently conducted maritime patrols around the Korean Peninsula.
British sailors on the HMS Spey offshore patrol vessel sailed the region alongside their South Korean counterparts to enforce the United Nations Security Council Resolutions against North Korea.
Since 2006, the UNSC has imposed nine major sanctions on Pyongyang over its nuclear and missile activities. The council also awarded UN member states the authority to inspect and seize North Korean cargo entering their territories.
North Korea’s weapons tests go against the Non-Proliferation Nuclear Weapons Treaty, an agreement between nations to prevent the spread of nuclear weapons and promote the safe use of nuclear energy. In 2003, Pyongyang withdrew from the NPT after the United States accused it of running a uranium enrichment program.
The U.K. and South Korea’s first-of-its-kind joint maritime operation is part of the two nations’ commitment to protecting peace and security in the Indo-Pacific.
The patrol, which state media first reported in April, comes five months after South Korean President Yoon Suk-Yeoul signed the Downing Street Accord with British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, making the nations global strategic partners.
“The Downing Street Accord commits to bringing the U.K. and ROK closer together, upgrading ties to the status of Global Strategic Partners and providing for closer collaboration in a wide range of fields, including trade and business, clean energy and climate, and development,” said U.K. Defense Secretary Grant Shapps.
