G7 agrees to ramp up economic pressure on N. Korea

WASHINGTON – Group of Seven finance leaders agreed to co-operate in countering North Korean attempts to avert UN sanctions, a senior Japanese finance ministry official said on Thursday.

It is rare for G7 finance leaders to disclose they had met on the sidelines of a G20 gathering, which was a show of resolve among advanced economies to boost pressure on North Korea in the wake of its recent provocations, said Masatsugu Asakawa, Japan's vice finance minister for international affairs.

"The G7 agreed on the need to apply maximum economic pressure on North Korea by cutting its revenue source and preventing it from abusing the global financial system," Asakawa told reporters after attending the G7 gathering.

"We agreed to strengthen co-operation, including by (taking) steps to counter North Korean attempts to avert United Nations sanctions," he said.