The Ugandan Foreign Ministry says it has expelled North Korean military experts and representatives of North Korean companies amid efforts to comply with the United Nations sanctions against Pyongyang over its nuclear weapons program.
"We are in full compliance," Okello Oryem, a deputy minister of foreign affairs, said on Friday. However, he stressed that Uganda maintained normal diplomatic ties with North Korea.
The Ugandan official said the North Korean community that remained in the East African country included diplomats or private individuals.
Uganda specifically asked individuals representing the Korea Mining Development Trading Corporation, North Korea's primary arms dealer subject to sanctions by the UN and Washington, to leave the country.
North Korea and Uganda previously enjoyed warm relations, but the latest decision marks a policy shift for the Ugandan government.
North Korea for years trained the Ugandan security forces in physical fitness, maritime warfare and weapons handling.
Global tensions with North Korea have escalated in recent weeks over North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missile tests. There is no sign, however, that international sanctions are having any effect on the actions of Pyongyang.
North Korea says it will not give up on its nuclear deterrence unless Washington ends its hostile policy toward the country and dissolves the US-led UN command in South Korea. Thousands of US soldiers are stationed in South Korea and Japan.
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