South Korea plans to deliver over 1,400 medical items to North Korea as humanitarian assistance

South Korea plans to dispatch more than 1,400 medical items, including automated external defibrillators, to North Korea as part of a humanitarian medical support program.

The Unification Ministry has drawn up a list of 1,431 medical items covering 166 categories to a hospital in the North Korean capital Pyongyang, necessary for diagnosis, surgery and treatment, Yonhap news agency reported, citing a government document.

The items, with an estimated cost of $6.75 million, include diagnostic equipment, such as X-ray machines, stethoscopes and blood pressure monitors, along with operating tables and other surgical and treatment equipment.

The ministry said the plan still hinges on discussions with the North Korean side and could change.

Pyongyang's willingness to accept aid also remains unclear as inter-Korean exchanges and dialogue channels are virtually non-existent amid strained ties between the two arch-rivals.

Seoul secured a sanctions exemption in May from the UN Security Council's North Korea sanctions committee to provide the equipment.

Some South Korean lawmakers in the National Assembly voiced concern over the plan, saying medical equipment could be diverted toward biochemical weapons production or repurposed to inspect flaws in weapons systems.

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young, however, pushed back on the concern, saying humanitarian medical aid should not be tied to North Korea's military policy and that the North's medical conditions are dire enough to warrant urgent support.