South to provide North Korea with nearly $3 billion in aid

Posted on : 2014-07-16 16:59 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Aid for humanitarian groups could be a sign that May 24 measures will be eased

By Choi Hyun-june, staff reporter

In line with the announcement of the personnel for the Presidential Committee for Unification Preparation, the South Korean government said on July 15 that it would give 3 billion won (US$2.92 million) from the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund to private South Korean organizations to support humanitarian aid projects in North Korea.

Since this is the first time that the government has used its budget to support North Korean aid organizations since the May 24 measures were instituted in 2010, a sign that the measures are being relaxed, at least in a limited way.

During the briefing on July 15, Ministry of Unification spokesperson Kim Ui-do said, “There are three categories of aid projects that North Korean citizens can benefit from, namely, health and medical, agricultural, and livestock raising. One billion won will be given to each category, which adds up to three billion won altogether,” Kim said.

Specifically, the health and medical category includes helping clinics to treat and prevent diseases among children, the agricultural category includes supporting greenhouses, and the stock breeding category includes giving aid to the dairy industry.

Just before announcing the May 24 measures in 2010, the Ministry of Unification gave 420 million won (US$408,862) in aid to Green One Korea, a private organization. After this, the government stopped providing aid of this sort. Since then, the Inter-Korean Cooperation Fund has only been supported in a limited way through UNICEF and other international organizations.

Some analysts think that the announcement on Tuesday means that the May 24 measures themselves may be in line for removal. But the Ministry of Unification advised against reading too much into the decision. “Since this aid is intended to improve the lives of the North Korean citizens, the government regards it as an activity that is permitted within the framework of the May 24 measures,” an official at the ministry said.

Whether North Korea will accept these aid projects is still an open question. The projects in question were included in the Dresden Declaration, which President Park announced in March, and North Korea has expressed its strong opposition to the declaration.

Increasing such fears is the fact that Pyongyang rejected a recent offer by Green One Korea to provide supplies to reforestation efforts in North Korea. “We will not tolerate attempts to use humanitarian aid for political ends by linking it to the Dresden Declaration,” Pyongyang said as it abruptly terminated the project.

 

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