China has objected to new sanctions the United States imposed against a group of Chinese and Russian companies for allegedly supporting North Korea’s nuclear program.
Chinese Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Hua Chunying said at a news briefing that the sanctions are not helping U.S.-China cooperation on efforts to rein in North Korean nuclear activity.
She said the United States should “immediately correct its mistake,” and reiterated China’s calls for restraint and dialogue to resolve the situation with North Korea.
The U.S. Treasury Department announced the sanctions Tuesday, saying they were a complement to a U.N. Security Council resolution passed earlier this month that applied new sanctions against North Korea and condemned the country’s ballistic missile tests. China was among the countries that unanimously approved the resolution.
A U.S. Treasury statement listed 10 companies and six people, including Chinese coal, steel and financial firms.
“It is unacceptable for individuals and companies in China, Russia, and elsewhere to enable North Korea to generate income used to develop weapons of mass destruction and destabilize the region,” said Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin. “We are taking actions consistent with U.N. sanctions to show that there are consequences for defying sanctions and providing support to North Korea, and to deter this activity in the future.”
