hankyoreh

By Park Byung-soo, Senior Staff writer
　　
The government resumed deliveries of humanitarian aid to North Korea on Tuesday through a United Nations organization. This marks the first delivery of government-funded aid to North Korea since the November 2010 artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island.
An official with the Ministry of Unification said Tuesday that approval was granted for the delivery of $6.94 million in aid that had been withheld from $13.12 million in government aid provided to the World Health Organization (WHO) in 2009 for humanitarian assistance in North Korea. A related document was sent to the WHO, the official added.
Seoul has been providing funding for a medical assistance program in North Korea as part of a five-year WHO plan that began in 2006. But in 2009 it requested a halt to disbursement of the remaining $6.94 million in aid amid deteriorating inter-Korean relations.
Analysts said the latest measure appears to be part of a policy of conciliation with North Korea since Yu Woo-ik took over as Unification Minister. In a Nov. 5 meeting with U.N. Secretary General Ban Ki-moon, Yu said he would “actively consider” delivering government humanitarian aid to North Korea through a U.N. organization.
Seoul has not provided any government-funded assistance to North Korea since sending five thousand tons of rice and three thousand tons of cement in October and November 2011 for assistance with flood damages in Sinuiju.
In September, the government proposed a shipment of 5 billion won ($4.5 million) in aid to North Korea, including food for infants and young children, snacks, and ramen. North Korean authorities refused to accept it, asking for rice and cement instead.
The government also plans to enter discussions on other forms of aid to North Korea through U.N. bodies such as the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) and International Vaccine Institute.
A Unification Ministry official said, “At the current stage, we are discussing matters with the relevant offices and fleshing out which international bodies to use in providing assistance, when, and how much.”
But the same official added, “We are currently limiting our assistance to vulnerable groups such as infants, pregnant women, and the elderly and infirm.”
“We have no plans to provide large-scale food aid to North Korea,” the official said.
　　
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