Humanitarian aid to North Korea falling

By Choi Ha-young

International humanitarian aid to North Korea has been falling in recent years mainly due to tension over its nuclear program.

According to the U.N. Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, North Korea received only $33.9 million in humanitarian aid this year, which is less than 30 percent of the U.N's yearly goal of $113.5 million.

This is mainly due to reduced aid from the United States and the European Union.

The U.S. provided only $1 million in humanitarian aid to the North, which is only 0.03 percent of its total aid worth $4.14 billion to the international community. The EU has not provided any aid to North Korea this year.

Before the North accelerated its nuclear program, international society was relatively generous to the totalitarian state. In 2012, when its leader Kim Jong-un inherited power, $139 million was given to Pyongyang.

The amount has been on a downturn since. Last year, the North received only $37.9 million in aid, 26.7 percent of the U.N. target.

Meanwhile, the Moon Jae-in administration of South Korea plans to provide $8 million in humanitarian aid. The decision made last month is in line with Moon's faith that aid for the North's healthcare and medical programs should not be affected by politics.

The government said aid will be delivered via the World Food Program and the United Nations Children's Fund, but the specific date of provision has not been confirmed.