Dec. 23 (UPI) -- South Korea will provide nearly $2 million in typhoon relief to the North despite renewed tensions and Pyongyang's refusal to engage in dialogue.
Seoul said Monday the assistance, about $1.7 million in total, should continue "regardless of the political situation," local newspaper Hankyoreh reported Monday.
South Korea's unification ministry said the humanitarian relief would be channeled through the Red Cross, while "continuing to promote cooperation" on disaster response between the two Koreas, according to the report.
The statement from Seoul comes amid an ongoing lack of North Korean response to South Korean calls for coordination on African swine fever.
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The Kim Jong Un regime first reported the disease at its border with China on May 30. North Korea's pig population may have decreased by more than 55 percent as a result of the disease.
South Korea's decision to send more aid to the North came after the 310th meeting of the Inter-Korea Exchange and Cooperation Council, local news service Seoul Pyongyang News reported.
The aid package focuses on relief for North Korea following damage caused by Typhoon Lingling, one of the strongest typhoons to hit the Korean Peninsula.
The bulk of the money is to be allocated to disaster prevention, in addition to improving the quality of North Korean drinking water and health.
Areas of North Korea most affected by Lingling include the Pyongan provinces and the two Hamgyong provinces, according to South Korean reports.
In early December, South Korea said it would $5 million in support for maternal and child health projects in the North.
In May, Seoul decided to send $8 million in humanitarian aid to North Korea after Pyongyang said the country is experiencing extreme drought.
