On Friday, the U.S. Justice Department said it had taken possession of the North Korea-registered bulk carrier M/V Wise Honest, one year after it was detained in Indonesia, citing illicit sanctions-busting activities. "The United States carried out an illegal act of robbery by seizing our cargo ship citing U.N. Security Council sanctions resolutions," the spokesman said in a statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA). The move was an "extension of U.S. calculation" to bring Pyongyang to its knees through maximum pressure, he said. "The U.S. must realize the consequence of its gangster-like actions... and must return our ship without delay," the statement added. The announcement of the U.S. seizure of the vessel came as tensions rose over Pyongyang's test launches of short-range missiles last week.

Source: Libya Today May 14, 2019 04:47 UTC