North Korea condemned new US sanctions targeting individuals and firms accused of laundering proceeds from cybercrime, calling the measures evidence of "wicked" hostility and promising retaliation. The US Treasury says state-linked hacking has stolen over $3 billion in mainly digital assets in the past three years and that the funds helped finance Pyongyang's nuclear programme. Sanctions target a network of banking agents, institutions and shell companies across North Korea, China and Russia, while diplomatic contact between the sides remains frozen since 2019.
North Korea Labels US Cybercrime Sanctions 'Wicked' and Promises Retaliation
North Korea condemned new US sanctions targeting individuals and firms accused of laundering proceeds from cybercrime, calling the measures evidence of "wicked" hostility and promising retaliation. The US Treasury says state-linked hacking has stolen over $3 billion in mainly digital assets in the past three years and that the funds helped finance Pyongyang's nuclear programme. Sanctions target a network of banking agents, institutions and shell companies across North Korea, China and Russia, while diplomatic contact between the sides remains frozen since 2019.
13:43, 06.11.2025Security
North Korea denounces US cybercrime sanctions as "wicked"
North Korea has strongly condemned fresh US sanctions targeting individuals and firms accused of laundering proceeds from state-linked cybercrime, calling Washington's actions "wicked" and vowing unspecified countermeasures, a vice foreign minister said on Thursday.
The statement by Vice Foreign Minister Kim Un Chol came two days after the US Department of the Treasury announced measures against eight people and two companies — including North Korean bankers — alleging they helped launder funds from cybercrime operations.
"Now that the present US administration has clarified its stand to be hostile towards the DPRK to the last, we will also take proper measures to counter it with patience for any length of time," Kim Un Chol said, promising a measured response.
The Treasury Department says state-backed North Korean hacking campaigns have stolen more than $3 billion in mostly digital assets over the past three years — a haul it described as larger than that attributed to any other foreign actor. US officials contend those illicit proceeds have helped finance Pyongyang's nuclear weapons programme.
According to the Treasury, North Korea relies on a network of banking agents, financial institutions and shell companies across North Korea, China, Russia and elsewhere to launder money obtained through schemes such as IT worker fraud, cryptocurrency thefts and sanctions evasion.
Those sanctions were announced as Donald Trump has signalled interest in reviving diplomatic talks with North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. Earlier negotiations between Trump and Kim collapsed in 2019 amid disagreements over trading sanctions relief for steps to dismantle North Korea's nuclear capabilities.
Since 2019, Kim Jong Un has largely avoided negotiations with Washington and Seoul and has shifted his diplomatic orientation closer to Moscow. Pyongyang has sent personnel and military equipment to support Russia in its war in Ukraine — moves that analysts say reflect a more assertive foreign policy aimed at countering the US-led West.
In recent remarks, Kim Jong Un urged Washington to drop its demand that he surrender North Korea's nuclear arsenal as a precondition for resuming diplomacy. North Korea also declined a meeting with Trump last week while the former US president was in South Korea for APEC talks.
What to watch
- Whether Pyongyang details any specific retaliatory measures in response to the sanctions.
- How the Treasury's allegations about cryptocurrency theft and laundering will affect international efforts to curb illicit finance.
- Whether renewed diplomacy between the US and North Korea gains traction amid continued tensions and geopolitical realignments.