02 July, 2017
Asked about the US sanctions on Friday, Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman Lu Kang said that China consistently opposes unilateral sanctions imposed outside the United Nations framework.
The announcement reflects growing US frustration over China's efforts to enforce worldwide penalties that are meant to starve North Korea of revenue for its nuclear and missile programs.
"This is not directed at China, this is directed at a bank, as well as individuals and entities in China", he told reporters. It is proposing to prohibit USA institutions from maintaining accounts for or on behalf of the Bank of Dandong.
U.S. Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin said on Thursday (June 29) the actions were created to cut off funds that North Korea uses to build its weapons programs in defiance of U.N. Security Council and unilateral sanctions.
USA officials told Reuters this week that President Donald Trump was growing increasingly frustrated with China over its inaction on North Korea and bilateral trade issues, and was now considering possible trade actions against Beijing.
China, which borders North Korea and is considered its only major ally, argues that negotiations are the best way to persuade Pyongyang to halt its nuclear and missile activities.
"We are committed to targeting North Korea's external enablers and maximizing economic pressure on the regime until it ceases its nuclear and ballistic missile programs", Mnuchin said during a White House press briefing.
The punitive steps were presaged by a tweet from Trump last week reflecting dissatisfaction with Beijing's efforts.
"I don't think the president is giving up in any sense".
The flag of North Korea is seen in Geneva, Switzerland, June 20, 2017.
The comment came shortly after the death of Otto Warmbier, a US citizen who was detained in North Korea for more than a year and returned to his parents in a coma. His predecessor had staunchly backed Trump's harder line.
Anthony Ruggiero, a sanctions expert and former Treasury Department official, described it as a small Chinese bank "sitting at the heart" of trade between North Korea and China. President Donald Trump has been leaning on China to use its influence as North Korea's main trading partner but has expressed some frustration recently with a lack of progress.
Mnuchin said the Bank of Dandong has facilitated millions of dollars of transactions for companies involved in North Korea's weapons of mass destruction and ballistic missile programs.
Dalian Global Unity Shipping Co., which Treasury accused of transporting 700,000 tons of freight annually, including coal and steel products, between China and North Korea.
As South Korea's new president visited Washington, the Treasury Department announced the Bank of Dandong would be severed from the USA financial system for acting "as a conduit for illicit North Korean financial activity".