S.Korea Red Cross announces flood aid for N.Korea
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SEOUL , SEP 13 -
South Korea's Red Cross said Monday it would send rice and cement aid worth millions of dollars to flood-stricken North Korea, in the latest sign of improving relations after months of tensions.
The Red Cross also proposed holding talks this Friday with its North Korean counterpart on resuming reunions for families separated since the 1950-53 war.
The North over the weekend had suggested restarting the programme.
The aid, worth 10 billion won (8.3 million dollars), includes 5,000 tons of rice, 10,000 tons of cement and three million packs of instant noodles, Red Cross chief Yoo Chong-Ha told a press conference.
The North also asked for construction equipment, a more controversial request since this could potentially be used for military purposes.
"The request for excavators is something that the government, not the Red Cross, should consider," Yoo said.
Yoo said the rice would be enough to feed 200,000 people for 50 days and would be directed to the town of Sinuiju on the China border, which was swamped last month by an overflowing river.
He said the aid would be mainly financed by the Seoul government.
Cross-border relations have been icy since Seoul accused Pyongyang of torpedoing one its warships in March, killing 46 people. The North denies the charge.
But last week the North freed a South Korean fishing boat crew held for illegal fishing, and at the weekend it offered a new round of reunions.
Yoo described the aid as unconnected to the reunions, which were last held almost a year ago. He said he expects them to go ahead next month if the two sides reach agreement.
About 80,000 South Koreans are desperate for a chance to see family members left in the North after the war sealed the peninsula's division. But up to 4,000 of them die each year before getting the chance, Yoo said.
Posted on: 2010-09-13 09:31
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