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Treasury takes aim at North Korea with asset seizures
The Obama administration on Thursday froze the assets of a company and two individuals thought to be involved with North Korea’s nuclear weapons program.
The Treasury Department said two officials from Tanchon Commercial Bank, based in North Korea, and a Hong Kong-based company called Leader International Trading Limited would have all assets under U.S. jurisdiction frozen. The officials and the company are also prohibited from engaging in transactions with Americans.
"Today’s actions also support the United States’ longstanding objective of impeding North Korea’s ability to fund its nuclear and ballistic missile activities," Treasury said in a statement.
The move comes amid rising tensions between North Korea and the United States over missile tests. The White House slammed the North Korean government on Thursday for an “unnecessarily provocative” warning about tests of long-range rockets and satellites.
White House spokesman Jay Carney said the warning “would only increase Pyongyang's isolation.”
Treasury is trying to turn the screws on North Korea through sanctions aimed at crippling their weapons work. The actions stem from a 2005 executive order that "targets proliferators of weapons of mass destruction and their supporters."
Leader International Trading Limited, meanwhile, is accused of shipping machinery and equipment to and from KOMID officials.
“By continuing to expose these entities, and the individuals who assist them, we degrade North Korea’s ability to use the international financial system for its illicit purposes,” said David S. Cohen, the undersecretary for Terrorism and Financial Intelligence at the Treasury.
— Jeremy Herb contributed.
