Seoul sets condition to North Korea aid

South Korea announced it will provide aid to North Korea but it would only do so on one condition – the latter should restart the test run of a railway linking the two nations. The countries were supposed to conduct the test on May 25 but the North canceled it on the eve of the event. “We made it clear at the talks that the test-running of railways is a precondition (for the South Korean economic assistance),” Kim Chun-Sik, a spokesman for the South Korean government, said. If North Korea accedes to the condition, it will get $80 million before August. Under the agreement, the loan comes with an annual interest of one percent and is payable in 15 years.

Source: SKorea agrees to offer conditional economic aid to NKorea (AFP)