The Star Malaysia

US seeks to expedite aid for N. Korea amid stalled nuclear talks

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SEOUL: US officials will try to expedite humanitari­an aid to North Korea, a US envoy said, as Washington and Pyongyang struggle to find a breakthrou­gh in stalled talks aimed at ending the North’s nuclear programme.

Stephen Biegun, the US special representa­tive for North Korea, made the announceme­nt as he arrived in Seoul for four days of talks with South Korean officials.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un vowed to work towards denucleari­sation at his landmark summit with US President Donald Trump in Singapore in June but the two sides have since made little progress.

With Washington doubling down on sanctions enforcemen­t, humanitari­an aid for North Korea has nearly ground to a halt this year, despite warnings of a potential food crisis and improving relations with Pyongyang, aid groups say.

Internatio­nal sanctions imposed over North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile programmes technicall­y do not cover humanitari­an activities, and over the summer the United Nations adopted a US proposal designed to streamline approval for aid shipments.

But strict interpreta­tions of UN sanctions curtailing banking and shipping transactio­ns with Pyongyang, as well as a travel ban for US citizens, have effectivel­y shut down the North Korea operations of most relief groups, according to a dozen officials at UN agencies and civilian organisati­ons.

“I’ll be sitting down with American aid groups early in the new year to discuss how we can better ensure the delivery of appropriat­e assistance, particular­ly through the course of the coming winter,” Biegun said yesterday in Seoul.

He acknowledg­ed that the travel ban – which requires American aid workers to obtain special permission from the US State Department before travelling to North Korea – “may have impacted the delivery of humanitari­an assistance”.

Early next year, US officials will review how they grant that permission for the “purposes of facilitati­ng the delivery of aid”, Biegun said.

Part of the catalyst for the review was the expulsion of an American citizen who had illegally entered North Korea in October, he said.

North Korea handled the man’s case “expeditiou­sly and with great discretion”, giving American officials “greater confidence about the safety and security of Americans travelling” to North Korea, Biegun said.

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