North Korea: China ‘wants N. Korean army to be fed’

From RFA’s Korean service (in Korean)- Feb. 14, 2008 Sungwon Yang interview with Prof. Hazel Smith of Warwick University, at a Korea Society event in New York City:

China and South Korea actually want the North Korean military to be fed. The last thing they want is to have to deal with is hungry and desperate North Korean soldiers roaming the border areas, looking for food.

- Hazel Smith

According to the North Korea scholar and former WFP official, the rice aid sent to North Korea by South Korea or China is first distributed to the North Korean military.

Between 2000 and 2002, Prof. Hazel Smith of the UK’s Warwick University acted as a WFP official, administering rice aid for North Korea and also designing rice distribution monitoring plans. RFA had an exclusive interview with Prof. Smith, following a lecture she gave for the Korea Society in New York City on February 12: “North Korea: Market Opportunity, Poverty and the Provinces.” According to Prof. Smith, pursuant to North Korea’s “military first” policy, rice aid received directly from China or South Korea is first distributed to the North Korean People’s Army.

Prof. Smith:

“Rice received from South Korea or China constitutes bilateral aid, and the North Korean government has the latitude to pick and choose its own priorities when it comes to the distribution of this aid within North Korea.”

In order to ensure a certain degree of transparency in the distribution of foreign rice aid within North Korea and to make certain that the rice reaches those most in need, rather than being first allocated to the military, Prof. Smith recommended that South Korea and China should disburse their rice aid through the WFP.

Prof. Smith:

“The WFP does have permanent representation in North Korea as well as a good track record and solid expertise in the monitoring of the distribution of humanitarian food aid. The South Korean government could not directly engage in monitoring of rice aid distribution, as this would be a rather sensitive diplomatic issue.”

If humanitarian food aid is distributed to a recipient country, it stands to reason that those in direst need should be the first recipients of such assistance. According to Prof. Smith, it is clear that the North Korean authorities, fully dedicated to regime preservation, distribute the bilateral rice aid received from South Korea and other countries to the military first.

Prof. Smith believes that China and South Korea also have a vested interest in ensuring that food is supplied to the North Korean military.

Prof. Smith:

“China and South Korea actually want the North Korean military to be fed. The last thing they want is to have to deal with is hungry and desperate North Korean soldiers roaming the border areas, looking for food.”

The WFP is currently considering the resumption of food aid operations in North Korea beginning in September 2008, but for that to happen, the North Korean authorities will have to be more open toward allowing monitoring of food distribution.

Translated by Greg Scarlatoiu