UN grants sanctions waivers for French NGOs' humanitarian aid to Pyongyang

UN grants sanctions waivers for French NGOs' humanitarian aid to Pyongyang



UN grants sanctions waivers for French NGOs' humanitarian aid to Pyongyang
Posted : 2019-02-14 15:39
Updated : 2019-02-14 17:18


North Korea's U.N. Ambassador Kim Song waits to address the United Nations Security Council, at U.N. headquarters, Tuesday, Jan. 22, 2019. Yonhap

The U.N. Security Council has granted sanctions exemptions to two French nongovernmental organizations for the provision of humanitarian assistance to North Korean children and people with disabilities.

A U.N. committee handling sanctions on North Korea granted the waiver for Premiere Urgence Internationale (PUI) and Handicap International late last month, according to the committee's website.

The list of goods approved for Handicap International, including crutches and wheelchairs, are worth 233,362 euros (US$263,300) in total, according to a document on the website. 
Handicap International received a similar waiver last month for its project to reduce the occurrence of disabilities in children.
The list of items approved for PUI was not disclosed. The website said the goods will be used to improve children's nutritional status. 
The approvals raised the total number of humanitarian exemptions related to North Korea currently in effect to 12. The exemptions are valid for six months.
Humanitarian activities are not banned under international sanctions, but related materials are subject to sanctions waivers from the U.N. 
Aid organizations have said that multilayered sanctions imposed on North Korea for its nuclear provocations are affecting their operations through a disruption of banking channels, a breakdown in supply chains and delays in the transportation of goods. (Yonhap)