South Korea imposed its own sanctions against North Korea on Monday over its nuclear and missile provocations ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump's visit to the country this week.
 
The Foreign Ministry put 18 North Korean individuals on its blacklist subject to the unilateral sanctions, which will freeze their property within South Korean jurisdiction and ban their transactions with South Korean banks.
 
Those listed include chiefs and executives of five North Korean banks stationed in overseas countries such as China, Russia and Libya.
 
The ministry expects the measure will help cut the North's illegal financial resources and raise awareness of the dangers of transactions with the blacklisted individuals at home and abroad.
 
It marks Seoul's first unilateral sanctions against North Korea since President Moon Jae-in took power in May.
 
The individuals on the list include Kang Min, representative of Korea Daesong Bank in China; Ri Un-song, representative of Korea United Development Bank in Russia; and Ku Ja-hyong, chief representative of the Foreign Trade Bank of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea in Libya.

Washington has reportedly urged Seoul to adopt additional sanctions, stressing they would be important symbolically although they may not have any practical effect.

South Korea slapped two sets of unilateral sanctions on North Korea last year, following its fourth and fifth nuclear tests. 

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