The United States has imposed financial sanctions on a North Korean trading company and a company in Iran for alleged involvement in nuclear proliferation activities.
The State Department said in a statement Wednesday that it designated Pyongyang-based Namchongang Trading Corporation under Executive Order 13382 for its connection to Pyongyang’s nuclear proliferation network. With the designation, the U.S. will freeze the assets of the North Korean company and ban it from dealing with American firms or individuals.
The State Department described the North Korean firm as a "nuclear-related company in Pyongyang" that has been "involved in the purchase of aluminum tubes and other equipment specifically suitable for a uranium enrichment program since the late 1990s."
Meanwhile, the Treasury Department said that Hong Kong Electronics, located on Kish Island, Iran, has transferred millions of dollars of proliferation-related funds to North Korea's Tanchon Commercial Bank and Korea Mining Development Trading Corporation.
Wednesday’s actions marked the first time for Washington to take substantial measures against companies related to the North’s nuclear proliferation activities in the wake of a new U.N. Security Council resolution sanctioning Pyongyang.
White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs said the recent measures demonstrate the seriousness of Washington’s intent to address the North’s nuclear activities.