As North Korea (DPRK) faces the challenges of recent typhoon and flood damages, the United Nations Security Council's 1718 Sanctions Committee has granted a humanitarian exemption allowing the World Health Organization (WHO) to provide much-needed relief.
The waiver permits the WHO to send five multipurpose tents, valued over $5,000, aimed at aiding North Koreans impacted by natural disasters. The exemption, which remains valid until April 20 of next year, underscores the UN's commitment to helping "the civilian population during the occurrence of flood, drought, and other emergencies," a letter released on the committee’s website last Saturday stated.
Although the WHO initiated this request in early July with intentions to dispatch the tents by December, the precise timing remains uncertain due to the DPRK's stringent pandemic-related import regulations, established since January 2020. These restrictions have notably hampered humanitarian efforts, though entities such as WHO and UNICEF have occasionally managed to send limited supplies through China, albeit after significant delays.
This recent move marks the committee’s third such exemption in 2023. Earlier, in April and May respectively, permissions were granted for the Food and Agriculture Organization to send soybean production equipment and for the WHO to import oxygen concentrators for patients grappling with COVID and other respiratory illnesses.
The relief provided by WHO is especially timely, considering the recent devastation from Typhoon Khanun, even though the aid request predates the typhoon's arrival last week. Natural disasters, intensified by climate change in recent years, continue to pose challenges for the DPRK, which regularly spotlights internal efforts to counteract damages.
