US sanctions Chinese firm tied to DPRK's nuclear program
The United States said on September 26 it had sanctioned a Chinese industrial machinery and equipment wholesaler, a new step in tightening the financial noose around the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s nuclear program after its fifth nuclear test this month.
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The US Treasury said it was sanctioning Dandong Hongxiang Industrial Development Co (DHID) and four of its executives, including the firm's founder, Ma Xiaohong, under US regulations targeting proliferators of weapons of mass destruction.
It accused the firm of acting on behalf of the DPRK's Korea Kwangson Banking Corp (KKBC), which has been under US and UN sanctions for supporting proliferation of such weapons.
The US Department of Justice said it had filed criminal charges against the Chinese firm and the executives for using front companies to evade sanctions on the DPRK's nuclear weapons and ballistic missile programs.
The charges accuse the firm and the individuals of conspiring to violate sanctions rules and engaging in international money laundering. The Justice Department said bank accounts associated with the firm and front companies received hundreds of millions of dollars that transited through the United States.
"Today's action exposes a key illicit network supporting the DPRK's weapons proliferation," Adam Szubin, the Treasury Department's acting under secretary for terrorism and financial intelligence, said in a statement.
"DHID and its employees sought to evade US and UN sanctions, facilitating access to the US financial system by a designated entity."
