North Korea is likely to have received medical supplies from an international agency after a few years of suspension due to the coronavirus pandemic.
An airport in Beijing says on its website that North Korean state-run carrier Air Koryo flew a cargo plane from Beijing to Pyongyang on Monday.
North Korea had suspended flight services to and from China after the expansion of the pandemic. The country resumed operations of such services with China in August 2023, and now schedules three flights a week. But regular flights do not take place on Monday.
Diplomatic sources say Monday’s flight appears to have transported medical supplies from an international agency, including vaccines for children.
In a separate move, the Chinese embassy in Pyongyang revealed on Monday that Director-General Qu Dongyu of the UN Food and Agriculture Organization is visiting North Korea.
North Korea imposed strict border controls in January 2020 to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the country.
Visits to the North by international agency officials have not yet been officially confirmed since the pandemic.
All eyes are on whether Pyongyang will begin to accept aid from international agencies on a full scale.