The United States has handed over to the UN the results of an investigation of how North Korea diverted aid money from the UN Development Programme and used it to buy overseas real estate and military equipment. The investigation by the U.S. State Department shows that millions of dollars in aid money were used for purposes other than intended.
The mission of the UNDP is to assist economic development in developing countries. The agency draws its funds from the voluntary donations of UN member nations to aid the people of poor countries. Since opening an office in Pyongyang in 1980, the UNDP has provided North Korea with tens of millions of dollars in aid. But now, the UN is conducting an internal probe due to the suspicions that its aid money to North Korea was being diverted.
From 2001 to 2002 alone, the UNDP provided over US$8 million in aid money to North Korea. The U.S. State Department says $2.8 million of that was used to purchase real estate in France, the United Kingdom and Canada. It remains unclear how much more of the UNDP’s aid money had been misappropriated. The State Department also alleged that the UNDP paid nearly $2.7 million for “goods and equipment” to a North Korean financial institution that is linked to Tanchon Commercial Bank. U.S. President George W. Bush designated that institution in 2005 as the main North Korean financial agent for sales of ballistic missiles and parts used in the assembly of weapons and missiles.
It’s not just the UNDP’s aid money. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2001 said most of the food aid provided to North Korea was being diverted by the military, intelligence agency and the government.` And when international aid groups stepped up monitoring of food distribution, North Korea told them to leave. The survival of its people is only a secondary concern for the North Korean government.
The South Korean government is not even willing to check whether its aid to North Korea is being used properly. Even though pictures have been published showing North Korean soldiers moving rice bags marked “Republic of Korea”, South Korea’s unification minister says we “should not presume” that the rice is being diverted to the North Korean military.
