After spending £1 BILLION on nukes North Korea begs world for aid to feed and shelter people hit by flood disaster
Heavy rains have destroyed 17,180 houses and left more than 44,000 people homeless
BOMB-crazy tyrant Kim Jong-un's government has sent a begging bowl to the west for help - after he blew all his country's cash on NUKES.
The despot has spent more than £1BILLION trying to get his country's controversial nuclear programme off the ground.
But now the rogue state has been rocked by a huge humanitarian crisis and there is just no money left in its coffers to help those is dire need.
Jong Kwon, North Korea’s counsellor at the UN mission in New York, sent an urgent email appeal for the aid — as Pyongyang set off its fifth underground nuclear test.
Kwon wrote to several organisations providing aid to North Korea explaining that heavy rains and subsequent floods hit two provinces in the northeastern part of the country.
He stated North Korea “would like to appeal to you all for an emergency support to the devastating flood damage area in [North Korea],” according to an email obtained by .
“It has been known that the primary necessaries for them are food, shelter tents, blankets and medicine, etc,” Mr. Kwon said.
A second North Korean email told foreign groups that Pyongyang would allow monitoring of aid distribution — after the government diverted foreign aid intended for civilians to the North Korean military.
The emails coincided with a rare public appeal for flood relief published Sunday in North Korea’s official KCNA news agency.
News reports from the region stated the floods are expected to cause more food shortages.
South Korea’s Yonhap reported that North Korean food shortages will amount to some 600,000 tons less than is needed by the population.
Regime critics say North Korea’s appeal for humanitarian aid is duplicitous at a time when the Kim regime is accelerating its destabilising nuclear and missile programs.
The nuclear test carried out last Friday was the fifth underground blast and the second this year.
Analysts estimate North Korea has spent at least $1.5 billion on its nuclear infrastructure and weapons — money that could have been spent to alleviate the flood damage.
North Korea also continues extensive testing of ballistic missiles, conducting 13 flight tests involving 22 missiles in recent months, among them medium-range Musudans and Nodongs.