The U.S. Sanctions 'Covert Payment Networks' Between Russia and North Korea

On Thursday, September 20, the U.S. Department of the Treasury added five entities and one individual to its sanctions list, stating that they were involved in 'illegal payment mechanisms between Russia and North Korea.' According to the U.S. State Department's website, these sanctions expose and disrupt covert networks that facilitate funding for North Korea's illegal missile and weapons of mass destruction programs and support Russia's war with Ukraine. The U.S. State Department emphasized that the growing financial cooperation between Russia and North Korea directly threatens international security and the global financial system. U.S. officials claim that Russia has increasingly become dependent on North Korea and has imported ballistic missiles from the Islamic Republic of Iran. The U.S. State Department asserts that the new sanctions demonstrate that President Vladimir Putin's government uses illegal networks to assist North Korea in gaining access to the international banking system, contrary to targeted financial sanctions imposed by the United Nations Security Council. Reuters: Germany has halted arms exports to Israel. The U.S. has imposed new human rights sanctions against entities and officials of the Islamic Republic. The G7 condemned the transfer of ballistic missiles from the Iranian government to Russia. Ukraine: Russia has launched over 8,000 'Shahed' drones since the beginning of the war.