The United States on Thursday announced economic sanctions against three North Korean officials for supporting
"the development of weapons of mass destruction and
ballistic missiles
"
by Pyongyang, the US Treasury Department said in a statement. .
These measures target three leaders of the North Korean Workers' Party, Jon Il Ho, Yu Jin, and Kim Su Gil, already under European sanctions.
Pyongyang threatens nuclear response
These officials
"played a prominent role in North Korea's illegal weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs,"
said Undersecretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian Nelson. quoted in the press release.
He said the sanctions were taken
“in close trilateral coordination with South Korea and Japan”
.
North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said on Saturday that the nuclear-armed North Korea aims to have
"the most powerful strategic force in the world".
North Korea proclaimed in September that its status as a nuclear power was
"irreversible",
definitively closing the door to any negotiations on its disarmament.
She later threatened the United States with nuclear retaliation in the event of an attack.
Pyongyang has unleashed an unprecedented string of missile launches this year, including its most advanced intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) in November.
Read alsoNorth Korea: Kim Jong-un relaunches his missile machine
“Recent launches demonstrate the need for all countries to fully implement UN Security Council resolutions, which seek to prevent North Korea from acquiring the technologies, materials and revenues that Pyongyang needs. to develop"
these programs," said Brian Nelson.
The Workers' Party has also been under U.S. sanctions since 2016. Kim Jong Un called a key Workers' Party meeting in December to decide the isolated country's policy direction in 2023, media reported Thursday. of state.