China condemns U.S. sanctions against entities with suspected North Korea ties

June 30 (UPI) -- China lodged a strong protest following a U.S. Treasury decision to impose sanctions on two Chinese individuals and a Chinese shipping company for abetting North Korea's nuclear weapons program.

The statement, which included the designation of the Bank of Dandong as a money-laundering concern on Thursday, was condemned in Beijing.

Chinese foreign ministry spokesman Geng Shuang said Friday the sanctions imposed on Chinese entities represent a "violation" of an "important shared consensus" reached during a summit between U.S. President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping.

"The two leaders of the United States and China reached an important shared consensus in the talks at Mar-a-Lago, and China wants to continue the spirit of this development trend," Geng told reporters. "But recent and wrongful U.S. actions violate the shared consensus."

The spokesman then called on the United States to "correct the wrongs" and "return U.S.-China relations back to healthy and stable development."

The latest U.S. sanctions target two Chinese nationals, Li Hongri, 53, and Sun Wei, 35. Both men are being blacklisted for facilitating North Korea's financial transactions.

Shipping firm Dalian Global Unity Shipping was added to the existing sanctions list for funneling banned luxury goods to North Korea.

Kim Jong Un is believed to reward senior North Korean officials for their loyalty with gifts of Swiss watches and expensive cars.

In a separate statement, North Korea condemned the United States for designating North Korea as one of the worst offenders in human trafficking.

A North Korean foreign ministry spokesman condemned Pyongyang's Tier 3 designation in the U.S. State Department report on human trafficking, and claimed the United States is under "constant condemnation" for trafficking and rights abuses.

"The United States has been slandering us, targeting our workers who work under legitimate contracts in other countries," the North Korean spokesman said.

Tens of thousands of North Koreans are deployed to work in several countries, including China and Russia, to earn hundreds of millions of dollars in foreign currency for the regime.