The South Korean Ministry of Foreign Affairs has decided to impose new sanctions on three individuals and five organizations in North Korea that are suspected of being involved in "secret programs" used to develop Pyongyang's nuclear weapons and missiles, as well as helping the country to circumvent sanctions.
The bans include Lee Sung-un, a former economic and commercial adviser to the North Korean embassy in Mongolia, and Vladlen Amchentsev, a South African who reportedly helped Pyongyang with illegal oil purchases.
The ministry warned that Pyongyang's repeated actions could lead to a "lose-lose situation" in which South Korea and the United States are stepping up their containment positions.
Amchentsev was born in January 1969 in the city of Klimovsk, Moscow Region. He is associated with Velmur Management Pte., which has been under US sanctions since 2017. Her and Singapore's Transatlantic Partners Pte. The US Treasury was accused of supplying diesel fuel and fuel oil to North Korea. In 2018, Amchentsev was already under US sanctions.