India and North Korea Foreign Ministers Discuss Food Aid
NEW DELHI, April 20 (UPI) — North Korean foreign minister Ri Su Yong met with his India counterpart Sushma Swaraj to request food aid and other forms of humanitarian assistance.
The visit earlier this month marked the first time a North Korean foreign minister paid an official visit to New Delhi, reported The Telegraph of Calcutta. According to the newspaper, India plans to send wheat and other grains to North Korea.
The United Nations said on April 8 that North Korea is experiencing a food shortage and the reduction in food aid from the international community is posing risks to 18 million North Koreans who were once victims of a major famine two decades ago.
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Ri Su Yong’s plea to India comes at a time when aid from the international community has decreased dramatically over the years.
International humanitarian aid to North Korea in 2004 was estimated to be $300 million, but it was down to $50 million by 2014.
According to an official press release from India’s ministry of external affairs, Swaraj held talks with Ri in a “frank and friendly atmosphere” regarding India’s security concerns and India’s past humanitarian assistance to reclusive Pyongyang.
In 2011, India agreed to send emergency food supplies. According to South Korean news agency Newsis, India supplied humanitarian assistance worth $1 million that year.
Swaraj’s meeting with Ri comes after Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi‘s government has signaled an interest in expanding India’s role in the Asia-Pacific region, including the Korean peninsula.
New Delhi holds closer relations to Seoul, and South Korea’s investments in India have been a draw for the healthier ties between the two countries.
India also remains concerned about North Korea’s missile technology transfer to Pakistan.
