The US on Thursday imposed sanctions on two Chinese citizens and a shipping company for helping North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs and accused a Chinese bank of laundering money for Pyongyang.
US Secretary of the Treasury Steve Mnuchin said the actions were designed to cut off funds that North Korea uses to build its weapons program.
“We will follow the money and cut off the money,” he told a news conference.
A US Department of the Treasury statement identified the bank as the Bank of Dandong and the firm as Dalian Global Unity Shipping Co. It identified the two individuals as Sun Wei (孫偉) and Li Hongri (李紅日).
The sanctions imposed on the two Chinese citizens and the shipping company blacklists them from doing business with US-tied companies and people.
Bank of Dandong did not respond immediately to a request for comment.
A staff member at Dalian Global Unity would not comment on the sanctions and subsequent calls to the firm’s office in Dalian went unanswered.
Mnuchin said US officials were continuing to look at other Chinese companies that might be helping North Korea, adding that they could roll out additional sanctions.
US foreign policy experts have said Chinese companies have long had a key role in financing Pyongyang.
However, Mnuchin said the action was not being take to send China a message.
“This wasn’t aimed at China. We continue to work with them,” he said.
US officials earlier this week told reporters that US President Donald Trump was growing increasingly frustrated with China over its inaction on North Korea and bilateral trade issues, and is now considering possible trade actions against Beijing.
On Wednesday, a senior White House official told reporters that China was “falling far short of what it could bring to bear on North Korea in terms of pressure.”
The US move came as Trump was scheduled to meet South Korean President Moon Jae-in at the White House on Thursday to discuss steps to push North Korea to abandon its weapons programs, which have become an increasing threat to the US.
It also came after the US in September last year sanctioned a Chinese industrial machinery wholesaler, Dandong Hongxiang Industrial Development Co, for its ties to North Korea’s nuclear program, the first time Washington had taken such a step against a Chinese firm.
The Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs then said that Hongxiang was under investigation for “illegal behavior” and “economic crimes” following the provisions of UN Security Council Resolution 2270, which imposed tighter sanctions on North Korea in March last year.
Mnuchin said the US would discuss efforts to choke off funding for North Korea’s nuclear and missile programs with China and other countries at next week’s G20 summit in Germany.
The department said in an online notice published on Thursday that the Bank of Dandong had served as a gateway for North Korea to access the US financial system.
Authorities said 17 percent of Dandong’s customer transactions in the bank’s US accounts had ties to North Korea.
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