Aid ship sets off to North Korea

South Korea was set to restart fertiliser shipments to North Korea today, marking the official resumption of economic assistance to the impoverished country.

A Vietnamese-registered cargo ship was to depart the southwestern port of Yeosu at 2pm (5am Irish time) for North Korea, carrying 6,500 tons of composite fertiliser - the first batch of a 300,000-ton shipment, the Unification Ministry said in a statement.

The South’s official aid to North Korea has been suspended since July when North Korea test-fired a series of missiles, although some emergency relief supplies were sent later to help the North cope with heavy floods.

Aid was kept on hold in the wake of the North’s October nuclear test, but ties between the Koreas improved markedly after North Korea promised in international disarmament talks last month to take initial steps to dismantle its atomic programmes.

Following the February 13 landmark deal calling for the North to shut down its main nuclear reactor in exchange for economic and political incentives, the two Koreas resumed high-level reconciliation talks for the first time in more than seven months.