US envoy to meet NKorea to finalize food aid

In this Feb. 11, 2012 photo, residents walk past posters with popular slogans illustrating North Korea's main policies, on a street in Pyongyang, North Korea. / AP Photo/Jean H. Lee

(AP) WASHINGTON - The United States and North Korea will meet in Beijng next week to finalize arrangements of the first U.S. government food aid shipment to the impoverished country in three years, the State Department said Friday.

In a reminder of tensions that remain on the Korean Peninsula, however, Washington criticized a threat by the North's military to wage a "sacred war" against rival South Korea in response to current U.S.-South Korea military exercises.

In a diplomatic breakthrough, Washington and Pyongyang announced the aid Wednesday. In exchange, North Korea has agreed to freeze nuclear activities and allow the return of U.N. nuclear inspectors.

The department said the special envoy for North Korean human rights issues, Robert King, and senior U.S. Agency for International Development official Jon Brause will hold technical discussions with North Korean officials in the Chinese capital starting Wednesday. They will return to Washington on Thursday.

North Korea nuclear envoy to visit U.S.

"The idea is to finalize all of the technical arrangements so that the nutritional assistance can begin to move," spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told reporters.

The U.S. says it has offered 240,000 tons of food to be delivered in monthly shipments and targeted at young children and pregnant women. The last handouts ended abruptly in 2009 when North Korea expelled U.S. food monitors.

North Korea, which suffers chronic food shortages and endured a famine in the 1990s that killed hundreds of thousands of people, requested the assistance more than a year ago.

The United States denies the humanitarian aid is being granted to the North in return for its nuclear concessions that could now open the way for multinational talks. They also were suspended in 2009. Such talks would aim at negotiating what assistance the North would get in exchange for dismantling its nuclear weapons program.

Nuland described as "unfortunate" the statement by the Supreme Command of the Korean People's Army threatening South Korea with war. The statement was provided Friday to The Associated Press in Pyongyang.

"Frankly, it's not helpful to the kind of environment that we are trying to foster. We had a good, small initial step," said Nuland, "so we would like to see that matched with other steps as we move forward."

Washington has said that improved inter-Korean ties are crucial for success in the nuclear talks.

[erpicferl]

make em eat oriental flavor ramen noodles

[smittyc]

Well we have the Muslim Brotherhood running Egypt now, so why is anyone surprised about food aid to N. Korea. We just gave foreign aid to Myanmar while China is building an oil pipeline from China through Myanmar to Iran. Anytime you put money into a system all those involved in that system benefit. That of itself is not irresponsible, what is irresponsible is giving aid to nations that oppose and are a threat to your freedoms. Hopefully the food aid is tied to conditions, so much food after each inspection. That is not an unreasonable agreement giving the fact that N. Korea has broken every agreement they have ever signed.

[Overruled1]

Haven't we been down this path before with North Korea?
Didn't it result in the sinking of a South Korean Corvette?
Didn't it result in the shelling of a South Korean Island?
Haven't the south suffered deaths from these actions?
Isn't it the new leader of this backwards country responsible for all this?
So I ask, why? They are fanactical...let them die.

[Anotheryahoo]

What another waste, North Korea has broken every single agreement and this will be no different. Its govt of communism and worshipping its own lies is simply pathetic. Let China give it free food.

[krisd999-2009]

Socialism for the world! Send foreign aid to all dictators! Long live our great leaders in the Democratic and Republican parties!Our Republican congress is doing great works to expand socialism around the world! Wonderfull work comrades! don't listen to that Ron Paul who wants to end all foreign aid!

[venusvegasvada]

At what point is China going to finally get off it's @## and help get North Korea out of the dark ages?

This back and forth, threaten and starve and kill by North Korea can't go on forever. How many more South Koreans will get killed the next time North Korea throws a temper tantrum?

China really needs to step up and do something. Their assistance emboldens North Korea to be dysfunctional and juvenile. They are the ones that really need to tell North Korea that they will not stand by them if they start anything. Only when China tells North Korea they won't support them in a shooting war will North Korea stop acting like a spoiled 7 year old and realize they need to wake up and change their ways.

[ConSense]

North Korea is China's "useful idiot." They make a great buffer between the democratic South Korea and China, and really have no value if they get blown up.

[Bojax39]

Why in the hell do we feed our enemies while allowing Americans to starve by sending jobs to other enemy countries?

Let's keep our food and our jobs right here where they'll do the most good!