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Updated December 3rd, 2022 at 07:35 IST

US, South Korea and Japan sanction N Korea's Workers’ Party officials for WMD links

Treasury said it is taking action in trilateral coordination with South Korea and Japan against officials who have had leading roles in DPRK’s WMD programme.

Reported by: Zaini Majeed
North Korea
IMAGE: AP | Image:self
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United States and Japan on Friday announced a fresh round of sanctions against North Korean officials in response to Pyongyang's series of ballistic missile test launches that have posed threat to regional security. US Department of the Treasury, in a statement, said that the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctioned three officials of the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK). These individuals have provided support to the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea’s (DPRK) development of weapons of mass destruction (WMD) and ballistic missiles.

Individuals linked to DPRK’s WMD or ballistic missile programs

OFAC designated Jon Il Ho, Yu Jin, and Kim Su Gil officials of the WPK. European Union in April had designated Jon Il Ho, Yu Jin, and Kim Su Gil as persons responsible for the DPRK’s WMD or ballistic missile programs. While serving as the Vice Director and the Director, respectively, of the US- and UN-designated Munitions Industry Department, Jon Il Ho, and Yu Jin played major roles in the DPRK’s development of WMD in violation of multiple UNSCRs, and they have personally attended numerous ballistic missile launches since at least 2017, the OFAC noted. Kim Su Gil served as Director of the U.S.-designated Korean People’s Army General Political Bureau from 2018 to 2021 and oversaw the implementation of WPK decisions related to the DPRK’s WMD program. 

DPRK launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM), marking the eighth ICBM launch this year, OFAC noted. This ICBM launch, along with the over 60 additional ballistic missile launches conducted by the DPRK in 2022, clearly violates multiple United Nations Security Council Resolutions (UNSCRs). North Korea's belligerent acts demonstrate a continued threat to international peace and security, the US OFAC argued. 

“Treasury is taking action in close trilateral coordination with the Republic of Korea and Japan against officials who have had leading roles in the DPRK’s unlawful WMD and ballistic missile programs,” said Under Secretary of the Treasury for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence Brian E. Nelson in the OFAC release.

“Recent launches demonstrate the need for all countries to fully implement UN Security Council resolutions, which are intended to prevent the DPRK from acquiring the technologies, materials, and revenue Pyongyang needs to develop its prohibited WMD and ballistic missile capabilities.”

Japan, US' steadfast ally,  meanwhile also imposed sanctions on three entities and one individual for their ties with the nuclear and missile programs of North Korea. The sanctions were introduced as retaliatory measures to Pyongyang's intercontinental ballistic missile launch on November 18, which marked the eighth such ICBM launch this year. Pyongyang has argued that the ballistic missile launches were in response to the United States and regional allies, South Korea and Japan's joint military maneuvers that destabilize regional security. 

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Published December 3rd, 2022 at 07:35 IST

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