Taiwan has frozen millions of dollars worth of assets as it carried out sanctions on North Korea aimed at preventing the spread of weapons of mass destruction, a recent report said.

The implementation of targeted financial sanctions for North Korea has resulted in 81 freezing actions worth over $3.96 million, according to the Mutual Evaluation Report on Chinese Taipei released by the Asia/Pacific Group on Money Laundering on Monday. 
 

"Chinese Taipei authorities have highlighted and taken action against a number of demonstrable proliferation financing risks facing Chinese Taipei related to the DPRK," it said. DPRK stands for the North's official name, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

Chinese Taipei's trade with North Korea also dropped from $12.7 million in 2016 to zero last year, the report said, noting its transactions with the North are "closely regulated."

The APG is an inter-governmental organization consisting of 41 members in the Asia-Pacific region that grew from the Financial Action Task Force's Asia Secretariat. Its report evaluates Chinese Taipei's anti-money laundering and counter-terrorist financing measures, and analyzes its level of compliance with the Financial Action Task Force's recommendations.

Chinese Taipei has banned trade with North Korea since September 2017 due to its nuclear and missile tests. (Yonhap)