North Korea has reacted angrily to the United States imposing sanctions on three of its top officials, saying this move by the Trump administration could "block the path to denuclearization on the Korean peninsula forever."
North Korea denounced the latest U.S. sanctions, which Washington imposed for serious human rights abuses and censorship. It expressed "shock and indignation" at the new U.S. sanctions and accused the Trump administration of being "bent on bringing... relations back to the status of last year which was marked by exchanges of fire."
Pyongyang noted Trump's policy of "maximum pressure" will be his "greatest miscalculation." Instead, Trump should it return to the confidence building that was hoped for following the leaders' summit in Singapore.
Washington said it imposed the sanctions after a report revealed a number of human rights abuses committed by the men.
The U.S. Department of Treasury named those sanctioned as Ryong Hae Choe, an aide close to Noorth Korean dictator Kim Jong-un. Choe leads the Workers' Party of Korea Organization and Guidance Department. Also sanctioned was State Security Minister Kyong Thaek Jong and Propaganda and Agitation Department head Kwang Ho Pak.
The sanctions freeze any assets the three North Koreans might have under U.S. jurisdiction. It also generally prevents them from making transactions with anyone in the United States. The sanctions were announced as the U.S. State Department released a report on North Korean human rights and other abuses.
The State Department report said human rights abuses in North Korea "remain among the worst in the world and include extrajudicial killings, forced labor, torture, prolonged arbitrary detention, rape, forced abortions, and other sexual violence.
It's not clear if the decision to sanction the three men is related to the stalled denuclearization talks between the U.S. and North Korea. The talks, which started with much Trumpian bombast and bluster last June, have made almost no progress since Kim and Trump met in Singapore.
North Korea's displeasure with Trump has been steadily mounting. Last week, the North Korean state newspaper Rodong Sinmun slammed a decision by Trump on Nov. 29 to renew sanctions over alleged human trafficking. It called the move "an unpardonable political provocation."
The paper said the U.S. will be well-advised to get rid of the stale habit of confrontation and hostility at an early date, mindful that the trite human rights racket against North Korea will bring only disgrace upon the U.S.
