US slaps sanctions on 3 Russian entities, 1 individual over arms transfers with N. Korea

The United States imposed sanctions on three Russian entities and one individual for their involvement in the transfer and testing of North Korean ballistic missiles for Russia's use against Ukraine, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Thursday.

The sanctions came after the White House said that the North has provided Russia with several dozen ballistic missiles, some of which were used to strike Ukrainian targets on Dec. 30, Jan. 2 and Saturday.

"The entities and individual were complicit in the transfer to Russia and testing of DPRK-origin ballistic missiles by Russia since late November 2023," the State Department said. DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

The designated entities are the Ashuluk Firing Range; 224th Flight Unit State Airlines, a state-owned enterprise spun off from Russia's Air Force; and the Vladimirovka Advanced Weapons and Research Complex, a military facility involved in the testing of missiles, according to the department.

The sanctioned person is Vladimir Vladimirovich Mikheychik, the general director of 224th Flight Unit State Airlines.

"The DPRK's transfer of ballistic missiles to Russia supports Russia's war of aggression, increases the suffering of the Ukrainian people, and undermines the global nonproliferation regime," Blinken said in a statement.

"The United States continues to closely monitor any Russian-provided support to the DPRK in return for these weapons and will use all available tools to designate and expose individuals and entities involved in arms transfers between the DPRK and Russia." (Yonhap)