U.S. Charity Warns North Korea Food Will Run Out in June

WASHINGTON -- A U.S.-based charity that helped conduct a survey in North Korea is warning that food stocks will run out by mid-June and that, without urgent aid, people will starve.

The U.S. government is considering an aid request from North Korea after harsh weather hit crops.

A representative of the charity Samaritan's Purse, Ken Isaacs, said Wednesday that even if Washington agrees to supply food, it would take about three months to reach North Korea.

Isaacs said that based on the field survey conducted by five U.S. charities in February, without aid "people will suffer and people will die."

The U.S. special envoy for North Korean human rights, Robert King, said the need for aid, the availability of resources and the ability to monitor food distributions would guide Washington's decision.