The UN special rapporteur on North Korea's human rights situation said Tuesday, in a comment directed at Pyongyang’s leadership, that the COVID-19 pandemic cannot be a reason to justify the North’s isolation. 

In an interview with KBS in Washington, Tomas Ojea Quintana said efforts must be made to avoid giving the North’s hardliners the chance to use the pandemic as an excuse to maintain its isolation from the outside world.

He said in order to tackle the North’s food shortage problems, which have worsened since the pandemic, creative dialogue efforts are needed, including partially easing sanctions on Pyongyang. 

Ojea Quintana added that UN agencies and North Korean working-level officials have begun discussions on humanitarian aid, stressing that such assistance must not be rattled by political situations. 

On human rights issues, Ojea Quintana said such conditions in the North have not improved, adding that not being able to access information amid the tightened isolation is a serious problem. 

He then expressed hope to hold contact with North Korean officials, saying that securing a monitoring system, including having on-site access, is key to addressing the North’s human rights issues.