Trump admin considering new sanctions on China over North Korea ties: report

The Trump administration is weighing news sanctions on small Chinese banks and shell corporations linked to North Korea, Reuters reported Thursday.

The sanctions being prepared would leave larger Chinese banks unaffected but would deny smaller firms that do business with North Korea access to U.S. markets. 

President Trump and administration officials have grown increasingly irritated that China has not done more to rein in North Korea’s nuclear and missiles programs, despite public pressure from the U.S.

{mosads}Whether the new penalties are put in place will depend on how a high-level economic meeting between U.S. and Chinese officials in Washington next week goes and on how China responds to U.S. pressure on Pyongyang, according to Reuters.

Since taking office in January, Trump has vowed to press Beijing, North Korea’s only major ally and largest trade partner, to do more to curb the reclusive regime’s weapons programs. 

But the Trump administration’s patience grew even thinner last week after Pyongyang conducted its first successful test of an intercontinental ballistic missile believed to be capable of striking the U.S. 

In a joint news conference with French President Emmanuel Macron on Thursday, Trump acknowledged that Chinese President Xi Jinping was “trying to do what’s right for China,” but said he could do more to crack down on Pyongyang.

“He loves China — I can tell you — he loves China. He wants to do what’s right for China,” Trump said. “We’ve asked for some assistance with respect to North Korea. Probably he could do a little bit more, but we’ll find out.”