WASHINGTON, United States: The United States on Tuesday encouraged reclusive North Korea to open its borders to aid workers, easing some of the world’s toughest coronavirus restrictions.
Germany and Britain have reportedly sent inspectors to inspect their embassies in Pyongyang, which have been closed since the coronavirus outbreak, as a first step toward reopening them.
“There were reports of some European delegations being able to go back into the country, so we welcome those developments,” the State Department’s pointperson on North Korea, Jung Pak, told the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.
“We would also encourage the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] to further open its borders, in particular to allow for humanitarian cooperation,” she added.
Pak said that humanitarian groups had “really good people” working on North Korea not connected to politics.
“We want to make sure that children are vaccinated, that the health systems are in order,” she said.
Tensions remain high with North Korea, which has conducted multiple missile tests and rejected offers from the Joe Biden administration for talks.
North Korea said early Tuesday that the United States and South Korea will pay a “heavy price” for large-scale military exercises that begin this week.
President Park reiterated the US position that there is no hostile intent toward Kim Jong-un’s country, which conducted a nuclear weapons test.
“The US-ROK [Republic of Korea] exercises are purely defensive, and they are in response to the threats in the region,” she said.
