North Korea has strongly criticized the Trump administration’s latest sanctions over alleged cybercrimes funding its nuclear weapons program, warning that Washington’s “hostile” actions will never succeed in forcing Pyongyang to change course.
In a statement issued Thursday, North Korean Vice Foreign Minister Kim Un Chol accused the United States of harboring “wicked hostility” toward his country and said Pyongyang would take “appropriate countermeasures” in response.
The remarks followed the U.S. Treasury Department’s announcement Tuesday of sanctions on eight individuals and two companies, including several North Korean bankers, for allegedly laundering proceeds from cyberattacks. According to the Treasury, North Korea’s state-backed hackers have stolen more than $3 billion — mostly in digital assets — over the past three years to fund its weapons programs. It said Pyongyang relies on an extensive network of banks, shell companies, and representatives operating in countries such as China and Russia to move illicit funds gained through IT fraud, cryptocurrency theft, and sanctions evasion.
Despite President Donald Trump’s stated interest in restarting dialogue with Kim Jong Un, nuclear talks have remained frozen since their 2019 collapse over disagreements on easing sanctions in exchange for denuclearization steps.
Kim Un Chol said the new sanctions show Washington’s “unchanging hostility” toward the DPRK and that its pressure tactics “will never alter the current strategic balance or our national stance.”
Since the breakdown of talks with Trump, Kim Jong Un has deepened ties with Russia, supplying weapons and troops to support Moscow’s war in Ukraine while positioning North Korea as part of a broader front against the U.S.-led West.
