In this file photo, U.S. Deputy Secretary of State Kurt Campbell, fifth from left, First Vice Foreign Minister Kim Hong-kyun, center, and Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Masataka Okano, seventh from left, pose for a photo with the ambassadors of the six participating countries in a multilateral sanctions monitoring team as they announced its launch in a press conference at the foreign ministry in Seoul, Oct. 16, 2024. Yonhap

South Korea and 10 other countries highlighted their commitment to ensuring the full implementation of U.N. sanctions against North Korea over its nuclear and missile programs, a joint statement showed Friday.

The 11 participating countries of the Multilateral Sanctions Monitoring Team (MSMT) made the pledge after their inaugural meeting of its steering committee in Washington on Thursday (local time).

The meeting came about four months after they launched the joint mechanism following the disbandment of the U.N. monitoring panel in April last year due to Russia's veto.

"The participating states of the MSMT are aligned in our commitment to uphold international peace and security, safeguard the global nonproliferation regime, and address the threat arising from the DPRK's weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs," the joint statement read.

DPRK stands for the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, the North's official name.

"The MSMT Steering Committee underscores our shared determination to fully implement relevant U.N. Security Council (UNSC) resolutions regarding the DPRK," the statement said.

The committee also renewed the call for other countries to join the mechanism to maintain the sanctions framework against North Korean threats and activities that facilitate the sanctions violations.

Aside from Seoul, the participating countries are Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Britain and the United States.

The MSMT plans to publish a report on the sanctions implementation and related information in the coming months, focusing on providing timely content that highlights the North's sanctions violations with significant security implications, a diplomatic source said.

In March last year, Russia, a permanent member of the UNSC, vetoed a resolution to extend the mandate of the U.N. Panel of Experts that monitors the implementation of North Korean sanctions by U.N. member states. The panel was terminated April 30.

Russia's veto came as it has been bolstering military cooperation with North Korea amid Moscow's war with Ukraine.

With Seoul's initiative, the 11 countries established the MSMT to continue the sanctions monitoring. (Yonhap)