The U.S. has imposed sanctions on eight North Korean banks and 26 bank workers, beefing up pressure on the country over its nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.
 
Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a statement on Tuesday that the U.S. is targeting North Korean banks and financial facilitators acting as representatives for North Korean banks across the globe. 
 
The secretary said that the move further advances the U.S. strategy to fully isolate North Korea in order to achieve its broader objectives of a peaceful and denuclearized Korean Peninsula, adding the action is consistent with UN Security Council resolutions.
 
The designations are in line with a new executive order signed by President Donald Trump last week.
 
The sanctions freeze the property and interests of the designated entities and individuals within the U.S. territory or in Americans' possession, effectively freezing them out of the global financial system. 
 
The eight banks are: Agricultural Development Bank, Cheil Credit Bank, Hana Banking Corp. Ltd., International Industrial Development Bank, Jinmyong Joint Bank, Jinsong Joint Bank, Koryo Commercial Bank Ltd. and Ryugyong Commercial Bank.
 
The department said that the 26 individuals are all North Korean nationals working as representatives of North Korean banks in China, Russia, Libya and the United Arab Emirates. 
 
Applying a previous executive order, the department also imposed sanctions against North Korea's Foreign Trade Bank and Central Bank. The Foreign Trade Bank is the North's primary foreign exchange bank.

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