Treasury to crack down on North Korea’s access to tech

The U.S. Treasury Department is taking steps to block North Korea’s access to new technology and computer chips in retaliation for Pyongyang’s latest ballistic missile launch, a senior administration official said Thursday.

North Korea, officially the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, on Saturday launched its 11th ballistic missile since the beginning of the year. The rogue regime has nuclear weapons, and the U.S. and other countries in the region consider the missile launches a threat to the international community.

“These actions are to make clear to the DPRK that these unlawful activities have consequences,” the official said. “This is a serious escalation by the DPRK.” 

The official called the missile launches “needless provocation” and “a brazen violation of multiple U.N. security council resolutions.”

The Biden administration did not outline the exact steps the Treasury Department will take against North Korea. A formal announcement is expected in the coming days.

The two missiles launched Saturday are believed to have used a new intercontinental ballistic system that the regime unveiled during a Korean workers parade in 2020.

Military experts have claimed the new intercontinental ballistic systems give the missiles a longer range. The Biden administration hasn’t given a public estimate of the range of the new system. In 2017, Pyongyang tested a missile that demonstrated technology capable of striking anywhere in the U.S. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un had shifted to more conventional weapons for targets closer to home, at least until Saturday’s missile launch.

“We don’t have an assessed range of these systems to provide at this point,” the official said.

North Korea is already facing heavy sanctions after a 2006 nuclear test. 

The United Nations has toughened those sanctions after further nuclear tests and missile launches.

In 2018, it was estimated that the sanctions have cut off all North Korean exports and 90% of its trade. China and Russia last year began petitioning the U.N. to ease sanctions against North Korea.