U.N. sanctions monitors are investigating dozens of cyberattacks suspected to be linked to North Korea that netted $3 billion and helped North Korea further develop its nuclear weapons program, according to excerpts from an unpublished U.N. report reviewed by Reuters. "The Democratic People's Republic of Korea (North Korea) continues to flout Security Council sanctions," a panel of independent sanctions monitors reported to the Security Council committee, using North Korea's official name.
"Pyongyang has further developed nuclear weapons and produced nuclear fissile material, although its last known nuclear test was in 2017," the monitors wrote. The monitors also said Pyongyang continued to launch ballistic missiles, put a satellite into orbit and added a "tactical nuclear attack submarine" to its arsenal.
The 15-member Security Council has long banned North Korea from conducting nuclear tests and ballistic missile launches. Since 2006, North Korea has been subject to United Nations sanctions, and the Security Council has repeatedly strengthened sanctions in an attempt to cut off North Korea's sources of funding for the development of weapons of mass destruction (WMD).
"The panel is investigating 58 suspected North Korean cyberattacks on cryptocurrency-related companies between 2017 and 2023, worth approximately $3 billion, which are said to have helped fund North Korea's development of weapons of mass destruction," the monitors wrote.
North Korea's mission to the United Nations in New York did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the sanctions monitor's report. Pyongyang has previously denied accusations of hacking or other cyberattacks.
Diplomats say the U.N. report will be released publicly later this month or early next month. North Korean hacker groups affiliated with Pyongyang's main foreign intelligence agency, the Reconnaissance General Bureau (RGB), reportedly continue to conduct a large number of cyber attacks.
Monitors report twice a year to the 15-member Security Council that "trends include North Korea targeting defense companies and supply chains and increasingly sharing infrastructure and tools."
The Security Council is unlikely to take any further action against North Korea as it has been deadlocked over the issue for several years. China and Russia instead hope to ease sanctions to persuade Pyongyang to return to denuclearization talks.
Moscow and Pyongyang also said last year they would deepen military ties, with the United States accusing North Korea of arming Russia's war in Ukraine, a charge North Korea and Russia deny.
"The panel is investigating reports from Member States that North Korea is supplying conventional arms and ammunition in violation of sanctions," the sanctions monitor wrote.
The coronavirus pandemic led to a strict lockdown in the isolated Asian country that cut off trade and aid routes, but it slowly began to reopen trade last year. "The total volume of recorded trade in 2023 exceeded the total in 2022, with the reappearance of a large number of foreign consumer goods, some of which could be classified as luxury goods," the sanctions monitor wrote.
The sale or transfer of luxury goods to North Korea has long been banned by the Security Council. Under U.N. sanctions imposed in 2017, all countries must also repatriate North Koreans working abroad to prevent them from earning foreign currency for the government of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un.
"The Panel investigated numerous reports of North Korean nationals earning income by working overseas in violation of sanctions, including in the information technology, catering and construction sectors. Furthermore, North Korea continues to violate United Nations Security Council resolutions by accessing the international financial system and engaging in illicit financial operations," the sanctions monitor wrote.