The United States "politicized" the humanitarian aid to the DPRK, which is "an attempt to attain its sinister political aim," the spokesman said in an interview with the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

The United Nations issued on November 19 a consolidated inter-agency appeal on rendering aid to the DPRK, which has been affected by natural disasters in consecutive years.

"No sooner had this UN appeal made public than the US got desperate in its anti-DPRK false propaganda, floating such lies asthe 'diversion of food aid to the army,' 'exodus of North Korean refugees 'and 'drug trafficking'etc,"the spokesman said.

The United States revealed its ulterior intention in setting such unreasonable conditions as "opening of the whole country" regarding the "nuclear issue" as the pretext of humanitarian aid to the DPRK, he added.

The spokesman also accused Japan and other US allies of linking humanitarian aid to the DPRK with such political issues as"nuclear issue" and "normalization of state relations."

The cereal deficit for the DPRK in 2003 is estimated at 1.08 million tons, according to a survey released by the World Food Program in late November.

The DPRK will always welcome disinterested aid from the international community but will never accept any aid with political conditions, the spokesman said.

(Xinhua News Agency December 16, 2002)