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 | Saturday, May 06, 2000, updated at 15:45(GMT+8) | ||||||||||||
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Seoul to Donate 200,000 Tons of Fertilizer to DPRKSouth Korea Saturday announced that it will donate 200,000 tons of fertilizer to the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) this year, a move widely expected to contribute to the preparatory talks for the inter-Korean summit.On Monday morning, delegates from Seoul and Pyongyang will hold their fourth talks at the truce village of Panmunjom for the summit between South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) leader Kim Jong Il, scheduled for June 12-14 in Pyongyang. The South Korean Unification Ministry said Saturday the fertilizer donation was reviewed and made under humanitarian consideration and is not linked to the fourth preparatory meeting. "We will continue to help North Korea through reasonable means as long as it needs humanitarian assistance," a government official said. However, analysts said it will give a big boost to the fourth preparatory meeting Monday, during which the two sides will produce the first series of agreements for the summit. The announced donation of 200,000 tons of fertilizer, from both government and private organizations, exceeds last year's 155,000 tons at the request of Pyongyang, Seoul officials said the announcement was made when the DPRK enters the planting season hungry for fertilizer, showing Seoul's goodwill and its desire to further build mutual confidence for the summit. The DPRK is reported to suffer a shortage of 700,000 to 800,000 tons of fertilizer every year, although farming conditions in the country have apparently improved this year.
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