For the first time since imposing sanctions on Pyongyang in May 2010, the government has given the nod to a civilian aid group’s provision of fertilizer to North Korea.
 
Unification Ministry spokesman Lim Byeong-cheol said Monday that the ministry approved aid group Ace Gyeongam’s overland travel and fertilizer supply to the North.
 
Seven officials from Ace Gyeongam will visit Sariwon in North Hwanghae Province via an overland route Tuesday morning to deliver greenhouse construction material and 15 tons of fertilizer. They are scheduled to return home on May 1.
 
A unification ministry official said that the government will continue to approve humanitarian aid programs that are transparent and benefit North Korean citizens. The official stressed that the approval of fertilizer aid to the North has nothing to do with the May 24 sanctions imposed after the North's sinking of a South Korean warship in 2010. 
 
The approval is expected to encourage other aid groups to seek government endorsements for their plans to send fertilizer across the border.