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| U.S. Pledges 50,000 Tons of Food to North Korea | |
| 2004-07-24 | |
| The United States pledged 50,000 tons of food aid on Friday for North Korea this year, weeks after the two countries appeared to make some progress toward resolving a two-year-old nuclear weapons standoff. The United States, which is traditionally one of the top food donors to the impoverished, Communist nation, says its aid is independent of its negotiations to persuade Pyongyang to dismantle its nuclear programs. But the Bush administration acknowledged it would be good if the aid had a positive impact on nuclear negotiations, in which the two governments held their highest-level talks earlier this month. "It's our desire to help the North Korean people," State Department spokesman Richard Boucher said. "If that impresses the North Koreans and makes them adopt a more favorable attitude, then that's good, but our intention is to help the people and not to try to affect the talks." The United States could also pledge more food aid later this year, he added. The aid came in the same week the United States allowed North Korea's U.N. ambassador to attend a conference in Washington, the highest-level visit to the capital by the Pyongyang government during the Bush administration. Last year, the United States pledged North Korea 100,000 tons in food aid, and in 2002 it gave 207,000 tons. In those cases, the donations roughly accounted for at least a fifth of the aid originally appealed for worldwide by the World Food Program, according to State Department figures.
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| Posted by:Steve White |
| #8 #3 Stupid idea. The reward is supposed to be thrown to the dog AFTER he does the trick, not before. Bingo, Bar. |
| Posted by: Zenster 2004-07-24 8:38:48 PM |
| #7 Taters?, what's taters precious? |
| Posted by: RJB in JC MO 2004-07-24 5:28:19 PM |
| #6 This should be genetically modified grain so that the green moonbats can howl about it and give us an excuse to let them starve. North Korea will not be self-sufficient in the foreseeable future. Feeding them just delays the ultimate result. These people are beyond redemption. No one who has come of age in the lunatic asylum that is North Korea can be peacefully integrated into any recognizable form of civilization. Let them starve now or kill them on the battlefield later, sooner or later Kim Jong-il's legions are going to have to die. |
| Posted by: Random thoughts 2004-07-24 2:56:48 PM |
| #5 That's a lot of tree bark and grass clippings! |
| Posted by: JerseyMike 2004-07-24 9:30:26 AM |
| #4 So what are we giving them, long grain brown rice or Lucky Charms? Makes a difference, ya know. From last year, IIRC, the Norks were down a million tons, so this is a PR pittance. |
| Posted by: Alaska Paul 2004-07-24 3:01:15 AM |
| #3 But the Bush administration acknowledged it would be good if the aid had a positive impact on nuclear negotiations,.. Stupid idea. The reward is supposed to be thrown to the dog AFTER he does the trick, not before. |
| Posted by: Bomb-a-rama 2004-07-24 2:37:39 AM |
| #2 It should read 50,000 Tons of WMD ! |
| Posted by: Rick 2004-07-24 1:49:30 AM |
| #1 2002 207,000 tons 2003 100,000 tons 2004 50,000 tons 2005 25,000 tons Asymptotically approaching starvation. |
| Posted by: RWV 2004-07-24 1:26:55 AM |