Editor’s note: The following article is an opinion piece by John Everard, a former member of the U.N. Panel of Experts and the British ambassador to Pyongyang from 2006-2008. Views expressed in opinion articles are exclusively the author’s own and do not represent those of NK News.

On Tuesday, the U.N. Security Council’s annual mandate for the Panel of Experts tasked with monitoring the implementation of sanctions against North Korea expired, and because Russia had vetoed its renewal, the Panel no longer exists.

The veto followed years of increasing Russian criticism of the sanctions and reflects the new close