Bon Voyage: Citing international law crapola, the United States says it has
no authority to hold the unflagged North Korean freighter and its Scud missile cargo bound for Yemen. The government of Yemen claims it purchased the missiles for self-defense. The United States says there's nothing illegal about deal and allowed the ship to complete its voyage to Yemen. According to news reports, this information was ascertained when the U.S. consulted Yemen after the ship was seized.
I find it hard to believe that that's all there is to this story. If this is a legit arms deal between two nations, why was the North Korean ship sailing unflagged? Why did the North Korean captain lie to the Spanish by claiming that his cargo was cement? Why all the hallmarks of a smuggling operation? And if the U.S. knew the destination of the North Korean ship prior to the Spanish interception, why wasn't Yemen consulted before the Spanish stopped the ship?
A bit of reckless speculation. If the ship contained missiles purchased by the government of Yemen for self-defense, I think that the U.S. would have either known that fact before the ship left North Korea or ascertained it well before the Spanish intervened. So let's suppose that the Scud missile shipment isn't legal; that it's an attempt by North Korea to arm Islamist terrorists. After halting the ship and confirming its cargo, the U.S. lets it go, publicly claims it's a legit shipment, and then secretly monitors who takes delivery of the shipment once it arrives in Yemen. Seems to me to be a sure way of identifying new candidates for a Hellfire missile attack.
