The country's annual need is 5.3 million tons. The shortage is due to the July floods but especially to cuts in aid from Beijing and Seoul, aimed at punishing the missile tests of Kim Jong-il.
Pyongyang (AsiaNews) The population of North Korea will have to face next year with 800,000 tons of food less, Jean Pierre de Margerie, North Korea director for WFP, said yesterday. "800,000 tons is a massive quantity, considering the North's annual need of 5.3 million tons," he said.
The food shortages are down to "reductions in food aid sent by China and South Korea as well as floods in July that destroyed cultivation". Beijing and Seoul announced cuts in planned aid as a punishment for missile tests carried out by Pyongyang on 5 July.
The official from the WFP World Food Program of the United Nations said it was "necessary" to hold a meeting with the North Korean government as soon as possible "to discuss the shortages and ways in which they may be tackled."
Meanwhile, the "dear leader" Kim Jong-il has decided to pay a visit to Mount Kumgang. According to the official news agency of the Stalinist regime, the dictator after reaching the highest peak of the mountain said: "It's very important to let people look upon this natural beauty to cultivate patriotism."