Japan, S Korea, US concerned over N Korea’s cyber-fundraising

The United States, South Korea and Japan expressed deep concern over North Korea's malicious cyber activities to support its weapons programmes. In a joint statement on Friday, officials and experts in the three countries said Cryptocurrency funds stolen by North Korean hackers have been a key source for financing the sanctions-stricken country's weapons programmes. According to the statement, using the acronym for North Korea's official name, they reiterated with concern that overseas DPRK IT workers continue using forged identities and nationalities to evade United Nations sanctions and raise funds for missile programmes. They also said that they are also deeply concerned about how the DPRK supports these programmes by stealing and laundering funds as well as gathering information through malicious cyber activities. South Korea's nuclear envoy held talks with his US and Japanese counterparts in Seoul earlier this week and condemned North Korea's weapons tests.

The US and South Korea have been conducting a series of annual springtime exercises since March, including air and sea drills and their first large-scale amphibious landing drills in five years. North Korea  calling them a rehearsal for invasion. Pyongyang has long rejected international criticism of its human rights record as a US agenda to overthrow its regime. Kim Gunn, South Korea's chief nuclear negotiator, said North Korea's nuclear ambition was "nothing more than a self-destructive boomerang" shattering its economy.