Leaked sanctions panel paper says 40 items sent that could be used in arms programmes

The US ambassador to the UN, Nikki Haley, holds up photographs of victims of a Syrian chemical attack in 2017. Photograph: Drew Angerer/Getty Images

North Korea sent Syria more than 40 items used in ballistic missile and chemical weapons programmes in the five years from 2012-17, a leaked UN report has said.

The panel of experts monitoring sanctions against North Korea said its investigations into Pyongyang’s transfer of prohibited ballistic missile, conventional arms and dual use goods found the previously unreported shipments.

It said an unnamed UN member state also reported evidence that Myanmar received a range of conventional weapons from North Korea including multiple rocket launchers and surface-to-air missiles in addition to ballistic missile systems.

The US and other western nations have accused Syria of using chemical weapons in rebel-controlled areas, including recently in the Damascus suburb of eastern Ghouta, which Bashar Assad’s government denies.