US sanctions Korean bank linked to weapons program

The Treasury Department is placing sanctions on North Korea's primary foreign exchange bank and a senior government official, a move aimed at slowing Pyongyang's ballistic missile and weapons of mass destruction programs.

The action against the Foreign Trade Bank and Paek Se-Bong, a senior official linked to the missile program, generally prohibits transactions between them and any U.S. person, and freezes any assets they may have in the U.S.

David Cohen, U.S. Treasury undersecretary for terrorism, says the bank facilitates transactions to North Korea's weapons proliferation network.