The United States on Tuesday slapped fresh sanctions on the Democratic People's Republic of Korea, and three Chinese companies were blacklisted as part of what US Treasury Secretary Steven T. Mnuchin called the US' "maximum pressure campaign" to isolate Pyongyang.

China keeps getting caught in the crosshairs of this campaign. This is the third time this year that Chinese companies and individuals have fallen victim to US sanctions against the DPRK.

Heather Nauert, a US State Department spokeswoman, said she did not think targeting more Chinese companies would affect Beijing's cooperation on the DPRK issue - "We have a good relationship with China. That's not going to change."