币界网报道:The Financial Action Task Force (FATF), a global financial watchdog, has raised concerns that cryptocurrencies are increasingly being used to finance weapons programs in sanctioned countries like North Korea, Iran, and Russia. In a new report, FATF highlights how these nations exploit digital assets to bypass international sanctions, with North Korea's Lazarus Group notably using stolen crypto funds to support its nuclear and missile programs. The report underscores the growing sophistication of these illicit activities, including the use of privacy coins, mixers, and decentralized exchanges to obscure transactions. FATF calls for stricter enforcement of its "Travel Rule," which requires crypto firms to share transaction details, and urges governments to enhance oversight of virtual asset service providers (VASPs). The watchdog also warns that without coordinated global action, sanctioned states will continue leveraging crypto's pseudonymous nature to evade financial restrictions. The findings come amid heightened scrutiny of crypto's role in geopolitical conflicts, particularly following Russia's invasion of Ukraine and Hamas' alleged use of digital assets for fundraising. FATF's report serves as a stark reminder of the challenges regulators face in balancing innovation with preventing illicit finance in the crypto space.