South Korea today began to send 50,000 tons of rice assistance to the
Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) overland, South Korea's Yonhap News
Agency said.
Over the next five weeks, the South Korea is to deliver 30,000 tons of rice
to the DPRK via the road passing through the border town of Kaesong, while
another 20,000 tons will be transported across the paved road on the east coast,
it said.
South Korea will also deliver another 350,000 tons of rice to the DPRK by sea
under an agreement reached by South Korea and DPRK earlier.
According to South Korea's Unification Ministry, the DPRK is supposed to pay
back 152 million U.S. dollars of the rice loan over 20 years after a 10-year
grace period at an annual interest rate of 1 percent.
