| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
 |
advertisement | ||
Thursday July 3, 1:08 PMPyongyang Refuses Seoul's Corn Aid OfferSEOUL, July 3 Asia Pulse - In an apparent sign of Pyongyang's prolonged tension with Seoul, North Korea has refused the South's proposal to send it 50,000 tons of corn as emergency food aid, the Unification Ministry said on June 30.In May, Unification Minister Kim Ha-joong proposed through Red Cross channels that inter-Korean dialogue be held to discuss providing the same amount of corn in food aid, but there was no reply. Recently, the South asked for the North's position on Seoul's offer of corn aid through the Red Cross channel in the truce village of Panmunjom, but a working-level North Korean official said they would not accept it, ministry spokesman Kim Ho-nyoun said. However, South Korean officials said they didn't consider it as the North's official position, "We will provide 50,000 tons of corn if North Korea gives details as to when, where and how it wants to receive the aid," the spokesman told reporters. "We're waiting for a positive response from the North." If the North continues to keep silent on the offer, the government may consider sending aid through the U.N. World Food Program (WFP) after reviewing the upcoming result of the organization's assessment of the food situation in the communist state, the spokesman said. South Korea sent about 400,000 tons of rice aid each year to the impoverished country over nearly a decade during the tenure of two liberal governments. Inter-Korean relations have deteriorated since South Korea's new conservative pro-U.S. government took office in February. Seoul has maintained that it would only consider giving aid if Pyongyang requests it. North Korea has spurned President Lee Myung-bak's earlier proposal for the countries to establish permanent liaison offices in each other's capitals, heaping scorn on Lee and his government. Seoul later softened its position, suggesting it can consider sending aid if food shortages in the North get serious. Seoul's latest proposal shows the government has moved a step forward from its earlier stance, under pressure from aid groups and political parties "to save North Koreans" from possibly dying en masse of starvation. The proposal came on the same day that the WFP announced the first shipment of 500,000 tons of aid, which the United States promised to send in the coming year through the WFP and non-governmental organizations, had arrived in the North Korean port of Nampho. The 50,000 tons of corn aid were promised by previous President Roh Moo-hyun but the pledge was left unfulfilled due to soaring world corn prices and other reasons. Aid groups say North Korea may see tens of thousands of people dying of starvation in two months if there is no emergency foreign aid. The Seoul government estimates that the North needs at least 5.42 million tons of cereals a year, but is 1.24 million tons short this year. (Yonhap) |
|||
|
Copyright © 2005 AsiaPulse Pte. Ltd. All rights reserved. Retransmission,dissemination or publication is expressly forbidden. Asia Pulse gives no warranty or guarantee as to the accuracy of the information and shall not be liable for errors, omissions, or delays or interruptions in the service.
|