North Korea reacted on the 6th to the U.S. government’s continued sanctions with a statement expressing that, since the U.S. has clarified its intent to remain hostile towards them, North Korea will also respond with patience and respond accordingly.
According to the Korean Central News Agency, Kim Eun-chul, North Korea’s Vice Foreign Minister in charge of U.S. affairs, stated in a discourse that they have confirmed the U.S.’s intentions to continue hostilities against their country and clarified their stance in response.
Kim criticized the U.S., saying its malicious intent has been revealed again without filtering and highlighted how the recent sanctions marked the fifth instance of unilateral sanctions against North Korea since the new U.S. administration took office, dismissing any public speculation of a change in U.S. policy towards North Korea.
Kim further stated that the current U.S. administration, by habit and tradition, has reiterated its hostile intent towards North Korea, accusing the U.S. of having false hope that its methods of pressure, coercion, threats, and duplicity will eventually bear fruit against North Korea.
He also insisted that these sanctions do not impact North Korea’s perspective or stance towards the U.S., describing them as emblematic of a failed North Korea policy by the current U.S. administration.
Kim cautioned that the U.S. needs to note that no amount of sanctions can change the current strategic landscape to its favor, calling it foolish to expect new results by following the failed patterns of the past.
On November 4th, the U.S. Treasury Department newly designated eight North Korean nationals and two North Korean institutions involved in laundering the proceeds of cybercrime as targets of sanctions. The previous day, the U.S. State Department announced plans to designate seven third-country ships involved in the illicit transfer of North Korean coal and iron ore as targets of sanctions.
These sanctions were implemented after the anticipated meeting between President Trump and Kim Jong-un fell through, leading to interpretations that this is a move to pressure North Korea into dialogue with the U.S.