U.N. Renewing North Korea Probes

William M. Reilly
June 12, 2007
United Press International
Original Source: http://www.upi.com/International_Intelligence/Analysis/2007/06/12/analysis_un_renewing_north_korea_probes/5531/

U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon Monday said he would seek an investigation of new allegations about the work of UNDP in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea while an agency official said UNDP supported the initiative but said a preliminary look at a second set of fraud claims does not match with its records. 
Results June 1 of a preliminary audit ordered the first of the year confirmed reports of irregular UNDP activities in the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. There were reports UNDP's own internal audits raised concerns about payments being funneled to North Korea, including to its nuclear program. 
The country has been under Security Council sanctions since October because of its proclaimed nuclear test in the latter part of last year.  Last week new allegations were lodged with the agency by the U.S. Mission to the United Nations. 
I am concerned of course about news reports, and new allegations, about North Korean activities about misusing UNDP funds, Ban told reporters asking about dual use items, with military as well as civilian applications, circulation of counterfeit bills and a whistleblower facing retaliation in connection with UNDP. 
The secretary-general said he was asking the budget watchdog panel to consider continuing the investigation, including the possibility of sending auditors to North Korea. 
UNDP Communications Director David Morrison told reporters while the agency takes the allegations very seriously, on initial review, the claims did not correspond with the agency's own records, but promised a further, deeper look and appealed for supporting documentation from the U.S. mission. 
He supported the secretary-general's call for a further probe, including auditors visiting the North Korean capital of Pyongyang. 
Morrison said the initial audit reported June 1 confirmed that we ran a very modest program of $2-$3 million a year and that we did have controls in place, including regular site visits, to determine how the money was being spent.  Morrison said UNDP lacks firsthand information on the new accusations. 
We actually have no idea what the United States ... has in terms of documents, he said. We've asked for the documentation.  While acknowledging there are documents in circulation that are telling a very different story, he said they do not seem to tally with the agency's information. 
There is clearly something going on here that we do not know about, he said, allowing for the possibility that new evidence would come to light raising concerns about matters we haven't discovered on our own yet. 
The agency issued a written response to the allegations, some of which were published last week including a claim UNDP transferred $7 million to a North Korean Government entity called the National Coordinating Committee for UNDP and the NCC transferred $2.8 million to North Korean missions in Europe and New York, which used the money to purchase buildings and houses. 
UNDP said its records show transfers to the NCC for 2001 to 2005 totaling only about $175,000, most of which was used by the North Koreans to host agricultural workshops for participants from Africa and Least Developed Countries in Asia. 
The agency was alleged to have paid nearly $2.7 million to purchase goods and services from companies linked to a DPRK entity designated under U.S. law as the main DPRK financial agent for sales of conventional arms and ballistic missiles. 
UNDP has no record of any dealings with one of the companies, the agency said, while acknowledging in 2004 it procured $22,000 worth of workshop equipment and supplies from the other company, on behalf of the U.N. Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization. 
The dual use items included a geo-positioning system, computers and accessories, and a mass spectrometer, for a project to assist with land use classification, natural disaster monitoring and crop yield estimation, Morrison said. 
Morrison said the agency knows of no instances of possible counterfeit currency linked to its operations in North Korea. 
He categorically denied the agency retaliated against a staff member and threatened others who voiced concerns over operations in DPRK. 
Morrison said a former consultant who served on a series of short-term contracts for UNDP, including in North Korea, has raised concerns over some aspects of UNDP's operations there. Those concerns were reviewed and the individual was interviewed by the U.N. Board of Auditors as part of the recent external audit. 
The individual does not currently work for UNDP, having left the organization in March 2007, upon the expiration of his most recent short-term contract, he said, adding there should be no expectation of an automatic renewal of a short-term contract.