In what's described as the "first" response to the cyberattack against Sony Pictures Entertainment, the Obama administration today announced new sanctions against North Korea. These sanctions are separate from those already imposed against Pyongyang over the country's nuclear program and come in response to "recent provocations," the US Treasury Department said in a press release. President Obama signed an executive order authorizing the sanctions earlier today.

"This step reflects the ongoing commitment of the United States to hold North Korea accountable for its destabilizing, destructive and repressive actions, particularly its efforts to undermine US cyber-security and intimidate US businesses and artists exercising their right of freedom of speech," the Treasury said.

The retaliation has officially begun

The sanctions target three North Korean entities, including the government's primary intelligence agency and a local arms dealer. Ten people affiliated with those entities and the North Korean government are also being hit with sanctions. Sanctioned businesses and individuals are barred from accessing the United States financial system, and American citizens are strictly forbidden from carrying out business with those named in today's retaliatory measure.

"Today’s actions are driven by our commitment to hold North Korea accountable for its destructive and destabilizing conduct," said Secretary of the Treasury Jacob J. Lew. "Even as the FBI continues its investigation into the cyber-attack against Sony Pictures Entertainment, these steps underscore that we will employ a broad set of tools to defend US businesses and citizens, and to respond to attempts to undermine our values or threaten the national security of the United States."

The White House describing today's move as "the first aspect" of its response to the massive hack against Sony Pictures also suggests it's denying involvement with North Korea's recent internet problems. After the FBI officially blamed Pyongyang for the debilitating cyber assault that Sony is still reeling from, President Obama pledged that the US would respond "in a place and time and manner that we choose." Again today, his administration vowed that the retaliation would be "proportional."

The full list of entities and people impacted by today's sanctions follows below, sourced from the US Treasury: