South Korea and Japan impose additional sanctions on North Korea

According to Yonhap, the South Korean Foreign Ministry announced on September 1 that the country has imposed unilateral sanctions on a North Korean company and five individuals involved in illegal funding of weapons of mass destruction programs.

North Korea's Ryukyong Program Development Company and its head Ryu Kyong-chol are among the new entities added to Seoul's sanctions list over Pyongyang's nuclear and missile development programs.

Other individuals sanctioned are Kim Hak-chol, Jang Won-chol, Ri Chol-min and Kim Ju-won, all of whom are linked to the company.

The latest sanctions demonstrate the South Korean government's strong determination to "lead international efforts to prevent North Korea from developing satellites, drones and other unmanned aerial vehicles," according to the South Korean Foreign Ministry.

In addition, the above measures are also aimed at preventing North Korea from evading international sanctions as well as finding sources of money for nuclear and missile tests.

This is South Korea's 11th unilateral sanctions against North Korea since the Yoon Suk-yeol administration took office in May last year. A total of 54 individuals and 51 entities have been blacklisted since he took office.

According to the ministry, South Korea is the first country in the world to sanction individuals and companies named among the countries with an independent blacklist related to North Korea's weapons program.

The announcement came after North Korea launched a rocket carrying a military reconnaissance satellite on August 24 and conducted a military command post exercise simulating an invasion of South Korean territory on August 29.

Meanwhile, Reuters quoted the Japanese Foreign Ministry as saying that the country has imposed additional sanctions on three organizations and four individuals involved in North Korea's nuclear weapons and missile development.