South Korea has given North Korea as another gesture of reconciliation 200 tons of tangerines. According to the presidential office in Seoul, citrus fruits should now be transported north with four aircraft. Mandarins grown on the southern island of Jeju are a rarity in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea. Experts estimate the value of the delivery at the equivalent of around 350,000 euros.
South Korea retaliates with the gift for two tons of pine fungus from the north. The North Korean leader Kim Jong Un presented the South Korean President Moon Jae In with her third summit meeting in Pyongyang in September. The mushrooms, which are also said to have health benefits, were distributed to South Korean families with relatives in North Korea.
Relaxation offensive faltered
Moon is currently working on a fourth summit meeting in Seoul. But the relaxation offensive finally faltered. Last week, Pyongyang demanded the postponement of a meeting between US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and North Korean envoy Kim Yong Chol.
North Korea threatened to resume its nuclear program if Washington did not lift its economic sanctions against Pyongyang. Pompeo, on the other hand, insists that punitive measures remain in force until North Korea’s nuclear disarmament.
