At a recent trilateral meeting in Seoul, South Korea, national security officials from the United States, South Korea and Japan discussed North Korea's illegal activities, including cryptocurrency theft and its ongoing weapons of mass destruction (WMD) program. took.
US National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan, Republic of Korea National Security Advisor Cho Tae-Yong and Japanese National Security Advisor Takeo Akiba attended the meeting.
Officials reviewed progress on various trilateral initiatives, such as the Commitment to Consult on regional crises, the sharing of ballistic missile defense data, and joint efforts to counter the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK)'s use of cryptocurrencies to finance illegal weapons of mass destruction programs.
The three countries had previously condemned North Korea's Nov. 21 launch of a rocket that placed a spy satellite into orbit. Despite the primitive technology the satellite is expected to have, it is thought that it could help Kim Jong Un's regime target US troops stationed in South Korea and Japan.
The US Treasury Department's Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) has taken action against several cryptocurrency mixers allegedly used by North Korean hackers to move stolen funds. Recently, OFAC added two crypto addresses linked to the Sinbad mixer to its sanctions list. In a joint operation, police officials from several countries seized Sinbad's website.
*This is not investment advice.