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North Korea’s Removal from Terror List Will Have Little Impact on Banks
By Brian Orsak
printA decision by the Bush administration to remove North Korea from its state sponsors of terror list will have little impact on how financial institutions and other companies deal with the Asian country. Plans to remove North Korea from the list within 45 days, announced Thursday, follow an agreement by the communist government to turn over documents detailing its nuclear program and destroy the cooling tower of its Yongbyon nuclear reactor Friday. North Korea, added to the list in January 1988, is one of five countries deemed terror sponsors by the United States. Additionally, the United States will lift provisions...
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The U.S. Treasury Department's sanctions arm blacklisted Korea Daesong Bank Thursday for its alleged ties to a branch of the North Korean communist government.
The United Nations Security Council Friday unanimously approved strengthening trade and economic sanctions against North Korea, including the reinstitution of financial freezes passed but not acted on in 2006.
Economic sanctions expected against North Korea over its test of a nuclear bomb will likely include companies in China, South Korea, Thailand and Russia linked to trade with the communist nation, say consultants.
A recent United Nations resolution against North Korea will bolster sanctions against the country but may fall short of results achieved by a 2006 asset freeze, say observers.
The U.S. State Department imposed economic sanctions on companies in China, Russia and Venezuela for allegedly selling components that could help Iran, North Korea and Syria develop weapons of mass destruction.
The Bush Administration removed North Korea from its state sponsors of terrorism list Saturday, a decision likely to have little impact on economic sanctions against the country.
The bill states that North Korea cannot be removed from the U.S. State Sponsors of Terrorism list unless it shows it has stopped helping other terrorism sponsors develop nuclear weapons.
The money was transferred Thursday through the New York branch of the Federal Reserve to a small, private Russian bank, Far East Commercial Bank, according to reports.
Treasury officials have collected enough information to quickly resolve a disagreement involving Banco Delta Asia, a Treasury Department official said. Officials last month began talks with North Korea over its alleged involvement in counterfeiting and laundering money through the bank.
The talks focused on North Korea's alleged involvement in counterfeiting and its efforts to launder money through Banco Delta Asia.