The United States, South Korea, and Japan announced on Wednesday the creation of a new trilateral team, operating outside the United Nations, to monitor the implementation of sanctions against North Korea.

The new body, called the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team, was formed after Russia vetoed the annual renewal of a UN panel of experts in March. That panel had been overseeing the enforcement of sanctions on North Korea for the past 15 years. China abstained from the vote.

A South Korean official stated that the new team aims to continue the work previously done by the UN panel, including issuing regular reports on sanctions enforcement. The team will also include participation from eight other countries, including Britain, France, and Germany.

The panel was formally launched during a joint press conference in Seoul, attended by US Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, South Korea’s First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun, Japan’s Vice Foreign Minister Masataka Okano, and the ambassadors of the eight participating nations.

During the press conference, Kim said: “There have been many discussions about how to establish an effective monitoring system to replace the UN panel. However, even during these discussions, North Korea has continued to violate sanctions, so we believed it was necessary to act quickly and fill the gap without further delay.”

Kim also noted that while efforts to revive the UN panel will continue, the new team is open to any country willing to assist in ensuring that sanctions against North Korea are properly enforced.

Campbell suggested that Russia’s veto was influenced by the UN panel’s previous report, which implicated Moscow in illegally procuring military equipment and ammunition from North Korea for its war in Ukraine.

“The potential for this to become a significant effort to track North Korea’s provocations and hold it accountable is very real. This is a big step in the right direction,” Campbell said.

Both Washington and Seoul remain opposed to any military alliance between North Korea and Russia. While Moscow and Pyongyang have denied accusations of arms transfers, they have pledged to strengthen military ties, culminating in the signing of a mutual defense pact at a summit in June.

Though the state organs especially, the powerful military establishment of Pakistan has made its best to shut voices raised against injustices and violence-based policies on the part of state organs, but the banned Pushtoon Tahafuz Movement (PTM) has made history. The PTM has not only proved its most “political and non violent organ” but it also established its identity as acceptable to almost all political parties-engaged in strange pulling for power and popularity.

Prior to commencing of formal proceedings, the PTM leader and his fellows bravely foiled all sorts of state restrictions, acts and actions against the three days traditional Pushtoon Jirga. No one can deny the fact that this three-day gathering has broken away all previous records of gatherings, Jirga and even rallies. It has also established the credibility as most peaceful and organized despite of government’s unprecedented tactics like banning PTM, arresting its over three hundred activists, raiding and ransacking the management camp, sitting on fire tents, impounding sound system, chairs and other materials and even opening indiscriminate firing against peaceful and armless workers, which caused lives to four and injuries to 16 others. Besides raiding houses of banned PTM activists in their native districts throughout the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa and Balochistan, the authorities concerned have blocked the Kohat Tunnel, which connecting Southern Pakhtunkhwa and almost Baluchistan with Peshawar, claiming someone parked explosive-laden pick up inside, just to create hurdles before convoys to PTM Jirga.

Pashtoon politicians asking for peace, stability and progress in their restive areas

On the other hand, the PTM leader Manzoor Pashteen has assembled almost all leaders and stalwarts of different political parties on one forum, especially staunch rivals from ruling PML(n) and its ally PPP and PTI of jailed Imran Khan. Since the completion of previous February 2024 general polls, PTI leaders have refused to sit across a table with PML(N) and PPP. The nationalist ANP has rejected the PTI request for a meeting. But last week, the PTM arranged Jirga, especially its banning by the federal government and killing and injuring of its activists has forced all rivals to sit across a table. All these political parties have unanimously sidelined the federal government decision in presence of the interior minister and allowed the banned PTM to hold its Jirga. Even the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government extended due boarding and lodging facilities to its audience. Maximum audience remained for over 80 hours under the open sky, sustaining sizzling heat at day time and chilly cold at night. But they have attached hopes-hopes of peace, stability, progress and prosperity for them and their next generation.

Among other demands, the jirga had called for:

– Withdrawal of Pakistani security forces as well as good and bad Taliban (TTP) from the region within two months.

– Relaxed trade with its neighbor Afghanistan.

– End to extortion.

– Guarantee of the local population’s first rights to the region’s resources

– Uninterrupted supply of cheap electricity in KP

– Steps to establish representative Jirgas for the resolution of inter-tribal disputes

– Resettlement of persons displaced by terrorism and military operations

– End to military interference in politics

– Formation of a judicial commission to inquire into the killings of PTM workers

Pasthoons ask Pakistani security forces and banned Pakistani Taliban militants to leave KP within two months

Whatever might be the reaction of government and state organs but in presence of Governor, Chief Minister and several others mostly occupying important parliamentary and executive offices, the Jirga participants through its DECLARATION has expressed non-confidence in government and state organs almost policies, especially acts and actions aimed at what the authorities call, handling the serious issue of security and terror. Even through this declaration, the military establishment and terrorists especially banned TTP have been held responsible for killing thousands of Pushtoons and destroying their properties and infrastructures. And on such grounds, the jirga asked both sides to leave the region-Khyber Pakhtunkhwa within two months. Similarly the Jirga has demanded restoration of old procedures of traveling and trading through Pak Afghan border, called Durand Line . The Jirga has also shown severe resentment over ill-treatment of Pushtoons in other provinces like Punjab and Sindh, demanding early issuing of blocked National Identity cards otherwise it threatened of surrendering all National Identity Cards and Passports unblock.

Now going into detail about the proceedings and declaration of Jirga, it could be considered a “serious warning” to state organs from Pushtoons who are second in population throughout the country. But at the same time, majority signatories to these historical documents are much more patriotic. They are determined to sovereignty and solidarity of the country but they have endorsed feeding up of Pushtoons due to indifferent attitude on the part of rulers. Instead of becoming angry or emotional, high ups sitting in state corridors at Rawalpindi/Islamabad need to review its own internal and external policies. All such policies utterly failed and instead of good, it badly affected the country’s image at global forums.  

North Korea blew up part of an inter-Korean road on Tuesday, according to Seoul, as tensions rose on the divided peninsula.

These symbolic explosions, the first of their kind, followed North Korea’s military announcement last week that it would cut road and rail links to the South as a “self-defense measure to prevent war.” This move came in response to a series of joint military exercises conducted by South Korea and the United States in August.

In reaction, South Korea fired warning shots near the border and described the blasts as a highly “abnormal” action.

The explosions also followed North Korean accusations that South Korea had sent drones over the capital, Pyongyang, last week. Leader Kim Jong Un described the alleged drone flights as a “grave provocation.”

“The moment a [South Korean] drone is spotted again in the sky over our capital, it will definitely lead to a terrible disaster,” Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, warned on Sunday.

Seoul has neither confirmed nor denied the allegations regarding the drones. However, South Korea’s defense ministry issued a stern response on Sunday, stating, “If North Korea harms our people, it will be the end of the regime.”

South Korea, which has declared North Korea its main threat, is actively developing its defense capabilities in alliance with the United States and Japan.

North Korea’s decision to begin dismantling road and rail links between the two Koreas follows Kim Jong Un’s recent shift away from his country’s long-held goal of eventual reunification. This shift occurred after South Korea officially designated North Korea as its primary security threat.

In January, Kim told North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly that South Korea was now the nation’s “archenemy” and ordered officials to dismantle state institutions focused on reunification and inter-Korean tourism.

Since then, the North Korean military has removed some railway lines and installed landmines and anti-tank barriers on the northern side of the Demilitarized Zone that divides the peninsula.