Pyongyang residents near the monument to North Korean leaders Kim Il Sung and Kim Jong Il. February 1, 2022 MOSCOW, Feb. 6 Last year, North Korea continued to develop programs in the field of nuclear weapons and ballistic missiles, and cyber attacks on cryptocurrency exchanges remain an important source of income for it, according to a confidential UN report, excerpts from which is published by Reuters. The report, prepared by independent observers, was presented to the UN Security Council committee on sanctions against the DPRK on February 4.
"Despite the fact that there were no reports of nuclear tests or launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles, the DPRK continued to develop its potential for production of nuclear fissile materials", the experts write.
In addition, they note, Pyongyang is still developing nuclear and ballistic missile infrastructure, and is looking for «materials, technologies and know-how for these programs abroad, including through cyber means and joint scientific research.»
The United States called the condition for a summit meeting with the DPRK At the same time, Pyongyang noticeably accelerated missile tests, the authors of the report say. As for cyberattacks on cryptocurrency assets, from 2020 to mid-2021, North Korean hackers managed to steal more than $50 million “from at least three cryptocurrency exchanges in North America, Europe and Asia.” Meanwhile, the humanitarian situation in North Korea continues to deteriorate. According to experts, this may be due to the blockade due to COVID-19, but due to the lack of information, it is difficult to determine how much UN sanctions unintentionally harm the civilian population. The DPRK's nuclear program has been a concern of the world community for many years. Because of this, the UN Security Council imposed sanctions against Pyongyang. North Korea said in 2017 that it had achieved the goals of the program and has since maintained a moratorium on nuclear tests and ICBM launches. However, since the beginning of this year, new tests have been constantly reported: in January alone, the DPRK launched hypersonic, short-range ballistic and cruise missiles at least seven times. » /> Kim Jong-un said that 2022 will be the year of «mortal combat»