A vessel sanctioned for smuggling North Korean coal docked at a Chinese port last week, despite its UN designation requiring it be prohibited from using foreign ports.

The 10,000 tonne, formerly Panamanian-flagged, Hua Fu was sanctioned by the UN in March for its role exporting DPRK coal from North Korea to Vietnam numerous times in 2017.

“The Hua Fu loitered off Penglai and Shidao, before delivering coal to Cam Pha on 14 September,” the UN Panel of Experts tasked with monitoring North Korean sanctions enforcement wrote in their most recent report.

“It then again loaded coal on 23 September in