Australia is sending a maritime patrol aircraft to Japan to join an international effort to enforce United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions against North Korea.

“This deployment is a demonstration of our enduring commitment to regional security and stability on the Korean Peninsula,” Defence Minister Linda Reynolds said in a statement on Sunday.

Australian Defence Force personnel will work alongside their partners to monitor and deter ship-to-ship transfers of sanctioned goods.

“Along with our international partners, Australia continues to maintain pressure on North Korea until it takes concrete, verifiable and irreversible steps towards denuclearisation,” Senator Reynolds said.

Since 2018, Australia has contributed to international efforts to deter and disrupt illicit trade and sanction-evasion activities by North Korea and its associated networks.

The deployment of the P-8A Poseidon maritime patrol aircraft is the fifth to occur since April 2018.

A Royal Australian Navy frigate is expected to participate in the operation later this year, following HMAS Melbourne’s contribution in October 2018 and April 2019.