简体中文
The half-brother of Kim Jong-un was killed by a chemical attack in Malaysia on the orders of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) government, the US has concluded.
Kim Jong-nam died after a bizarre encounter at Kuala Lumpur airport in 2017, when two women smeared his face with VX nerve agent.
The women, who say they believed they were carrying out a prank for a TV show, are on trial for murder.
The US said it would impose new sanctions on DPRK in response.
The US has consistently accused DPRK of being behind the attack on Kim Jong-nam.
DPRK denies any involvement.
The new sanctions, which came into force on 5 March, are largely symbolic, joining a vast array of punitive economic measures the US has taken against DPRK.
The announcement comes a day after a high-level South Korean delegation returned from Pyongyang where they had cordial meetings with Mr Kim.
Capitalising on warmer ties after the Pyeongchang Winter Olympics, Mr Kim and South Korean President Moon Jae-in have arranged a landmark meeting for next month.
It would be the first such meeting for more than a decade and the first since Kim Jong-un took power in DPRK in 2011.
US President Donald Trump has said the developments, including DPRK's suggestion that it might discuss getting rid of its nuclear weapons, "are positive" but might be a "false hope".
(BBC)
