North Korean 'hackers' robbed entities on the Internet to finance missiles

Kim Jong-un, during a meeting of the Central Committee of the Korean Workers' Party in Pyongyang this Monday. 朝鮮 通信 社 / AP

A North Korean “army” of hackers stole hundreds of millions of dollars over the Internet during much of 2020 to fund the country's nuclear and ballistic missile programs, in violation of international law.

As reported on Tuesday by the US network CNN, a confidential United Nations report has determined that the regime led by Kim Jong-un ordered to carry out "operations against financial institutions and virtual exchange houses" on the network to pay for weapons and keep the bank afloat. North Korean economy.

Hackers stole virtual assets worth $ 316.4 million (about € 261.4 million) between 2019 and November 2020, according to the document.

The report also alleges that North Korea "produced fissile material, maintained nuclear facilities and upgraded its ballistic missile infrastructure" while continuing to "seek material and technology for these programs abroad," according to CNN.

North Korea has for years sought to develop nuclear weapons and advanced missiles to match them, despite their immense cost and the fact that such a search has led the hermetic country to heavy UN sanctions.

The UN investigators, who cite sources from a country they do not identify, consider that it is "very likely" that North Korea could mount a nuclear device on a ballistic missile of any range.

However, it is not yet possible to determine whether these missiles could successfully re-enter the Earth's atmosphere.

The report was written by the UN Panel of Experts on North Korea, the body charged with monitoring the application and effectiveness of the sanctions imposed against the Kim regime as punishment for the development of its nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles.

Details of the report, which is currently confidential, were obtained by CNN through a diplomatic source at the United Nations Security Council, who shared parts of the document on condition of anonymity.

The Panel's report is comprised of information received from UN member countries, intelligence agencies, the media and those fleeing the country, not North Korea itself.

The chain points out that it is not clear when this report will be published, but recalls that previous leaks have annoyed China and Russia, both members of the UN Security Council, which has caused diplomatic clashes in the body and delays in the time. to know these reports.