Amid speculation of an impending nuclear test by North Korea, the Donald Trump administration has imposed a number of sanctions on North Korea for the first time since taking power.

The Treasury Department said Friday that it blacklisted one North Korean firm and eleven more individuals in accordance with three executive orders. 

The latest sanctions have especially targeted North Korean coal firms, people with ties to chemical weapons enterprises, and North Korean nationals working as agents of the regime in Russia and China, as well as other countries such as Vietnam and Cuba.

Paeksol Trading Corporation has been sanctioned for its trade in coal and metals. This comes as the UN Security Council and the international community zero in on the North's coal production, considered the regime's lifeline, as part of sanctions for its nuclear and missile provocations.

The newly blacklisted eleven individuals all work in China, Russia, Vietnam and Cuba. They are connected to North Korean corporations and banks sanctioned either by the U.S. or the UN.

Three of them in particular -- Kang Chol-su, Pak Il-kyu and Ri Su-yong -- are officials of the Korea Ryonbong General Corporation, which has been accused of aiding the North's weapons of mass destruction and chemical weapons program.

Their blacklisting appears to have considered the recent assassination of the North Korean leader's half brother in which the VX nerve agent was used.

Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said the latest sanctions are aimed at "disrupting the networks and methods the government of North Korea employs to fund its unlawful nuclear, ballistic missile and proliferation programs."

He urged partner nations and allies to take similar measures to cut off the North's funding. 

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