South Korea’s President said he would do his best to help North Korea fight COVID-19
South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol speaks at the National Assembly, May 16 – Photo: REUTERS
Speaking at a budget meeting at the National Assembly on May 16, Mr. Yoon said there should be no hesitation in providing necessary support to the people. North Korea when they are facing the threat of a pandemic.
“If the North Korean authorities accept it, we will give all our support, including medicine, COVID-19 vaccine, equipment and medical staff,” the South Korean president said.
Yoon also said he would discuss economic security issues with US President Joe Biden during their meeting in Seoul this week. This will include strengthening global supply chain cooperation through the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework.
Previously, both China and Russia offered to help North Korea fight the epidemic.
At a press conference on May 13, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Zhao Lijian affirmed that Beijing is closely monitoring the COVID-19 outbreak in North Korea and is ready to provide all assistance to the neighboring country. .
“As a comrade, neighbor and friend, China is ready to give North Korea full help and support in the fight against the epidemic,” Zhao said.
On May 15, South Korea’s Yonhap news agency quoted a diplomatic source as saying that due to the current COVID-19 outbreak, North Korea had asked China for assistance, but it was unclear what specific support it would provide. Currently, North Korea and China have not commented on this information.
The Kremlin spokesman also said that if North Korea makes any request for vaccine aid, Russia will handle it quickly.
On May 16, the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) said that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un convened an emergency meeting of the Politburo of the Workers’ Party of Korea and ordered the mobilization of the army to assist. stabilize the supply of medicine in the capital Pyongyang.
The country recorded an additional 392,920 people with fever symptoms and 8 new deaths.
From May 12, North Korea has locked down all provinces and cities throughout the country to limit the spread of COVID-19 disease, after leader Kim Jong Un chaired a meeting of the Politburo and confirmed The spread of the virulent SARS-CoV-2 virus is “a great disturbance since the founding of the country”.
A teacher takes the temperature of students in Pyongyang in October 2021, before North Korea announced a case of COVID-19 in the country – Photo: AP
According to KCNA, 1.2 million people in North Korea have a fever and 50 have died in the past few days. More than 564,860 people are under quarantine as the fever spreads rapidly in the community in and around the capital Pyongyang since late April.
North Korean media did not specify how many cases of fever and deaths were confirmed with COVID-19.
Experts say North Korea may lack test kits and relies heavily on isolating people with symptoms.
COVID-19 can have dire consequences in North Korea as its 26 million people are believed to be unvaccinated.
According to the newspaper SCMPAfter the meeting, Mr. Kim and members of the Politburo visited pharmacies in a district in Pyongyang. Mr. Kim later complained that most of the stores were in poor condition and lacked storage space and criticized some pharmacists for not wearing appropriate attire.
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