The 2023 Country Terror Report Released… Including Cuba, Iran, and Syria
In Washington, B.C., the United States government has decided to maintain North Korea’s designation as a state sponsor of terrorism this year as well. On the 12th (local time), the State Department released the “2023 Country Terrorism Report,” which specifies North Korea, Cuba, Iran, and Syria as state sponsors of terrorism.
The State Department re-designated North Korea as such in 2017 during the Trump administration due to incidents like the death of Otto Warmbier and the assassination of Kim Jong-nam, and it has maintained this designation since. In this report, the State Department stated: “We determined that North Korea repeatedly supports international terrorism by being involved in assassination incidents abroad.”
It also mentioned that four members of the Japanese Red Army, who participated in a 1970 airplane hijacking and are wanted by the Japanese government, continue to take refuge in North Korea. They stated, “North Korea has taken no action to resolve historical support of international terrorism.”
These details about North Korea are the same as in previous reports, and no new information on North Korea’s terrorism support activities has been included. Previously, the State Department designated North Korea as a state sponsor of terrorism in 1988 after the 1987 Korean Air passenger aircraft bombing but removed it from the list in 2008.
Being designated as a state sponsor of terrorism imposes sanctions such as restrictions on arms exports, export controls on dual-use items, limits on U.S. aid, and financial restrictions.