| And all Kimmie got was a toaster. |
The 10 countries include Vietnam, Mongolia and Russia, the newspaper said, quoting sources familiar with North Korean affairs. Washington has begun to urge those countries to freeze North Korean bank accounts in a bid to shut down the transfer of funds, the report said.
Washington designated Banco Delta Asia SARL last year as a bank allegedly counterfeiting U.S. dollars and laundering money for North Korea, barring U.S. financial institutions from dealing with it and leading the Macao government to freeze related bank accounts last fall. The United States confirmed last month that a major Chinese bank, the Bank of China, has frozen accounts related to North Korea.
| Since they value their relationship with American banks much more than they value Kimmie's counterfeit bills. |
The sources were quoted as saying senior U.S. Treasury officials visited Vietnam soon after the unanimous passage of a resolution condemning North Korea's launches of ballistic missiles by the U.N. Security Council last month. The U.S. officials reportedly pointed out there are some 10 North Korean accounts in Vietnamese banks and urged Vietnam to take stern measures. Vietnam responded positively to the U.S. request, the report said.
| Since the Vietnamese also value burgeoning trade and banking relationships with us. |
In order to fend off such a crackdown, North Korea for its part has begun to open its bank accounts in the name of individuals rather than business corporations that are subject to strict surveillance, the report said.
| I foresee all sorts of intersting counter-espionage operations ... |