North Korea denounced US sanctions over cybercrime-related money laundering on Thursday, vowing a corresponding response. The reaction followed the US imposing sanctions on eight North Korean individuals and two entities. Despite US President Donald Trump's desire to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, Pyongyang has not replied to the proposal.
North Korea strongly condemned the latest US sanctions against Pyongyang on November 6, 2025 (Thursday), pledging to respond in kind. The US had announced on Tuesday, November 4, sanctions targeting eight North Korean individuals and two entities involved in laundering funds stolen through illicit cyber activities.
Kim Un-chol, North Korea's vice foreign minister handling US affairs, stated that the sanctions reveal Washington's hostile policy toward the North. In a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), he said: "As long as the current U.S. administration has laid out its stance that it will be hostile to us to the end, we will also respond to them with patience and in a corresponding manner." North Korea denounced the US for its "malicious nature" and warned that tactics of pressure, appeasement, and threats would not work against it.
The sanctions emerged even as US President Donald Trump expressed willingness to meet North Korean leader Kim Jong-un to revive stalled diplomacy during his recent trip to South Korea for the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) summit. However, Pyongyang has not responded to Trump's proposal.
Earlier in the week, the US State Department called for UN sanctions on seven ships accused of illegally exporting North Korean coal and iron ore to China, violating UN Security Council resolutions on the North's nuclear and missile programs.
South Korea's National Intelligence Service (NIS) reported signs that North Korea was preparing for a possible US meeting around last week's APEC gathering. The agency assessed a high likelihood of a summit between the North and the US sometime after the annual South Korea-US joint military exercise in March next year.
