South Korea has expressed its willingness to send humanitarian aid to North Korea to help the country recover from heavy rains and subsequent flooding that have inundated thousands of homes and farmland in the north of the country, near the border with China.
The information was reported by the Associated Press (AP) news agency, which says it is not clear whether Pyongyang would accept help from Seoul or not.
Tensions between the two Koreas have been rising in recent times, with North Korea's growing nuclear ambitions and repeated military exercises organized by South Korea with the United States and Japan.
South Korea's Unification Ministry, which deals with affairs between the two countries, said Seoul is willing to quickly provide supplies to resolve the "humanitarian difficulties" faced by North Korean residents due to the bad weather.
In a statement, cited by AP, the ministry urged the North Korean Red Cross to respond promptly to appeals so that, if necessary, it could determine the type and amount of aid, as well as the logistics of its delivery.
The heavy monsoon rains that have hit North Korea in recent days may have caused up to 1,500 deaths, the same ministry said on Thursday. Pyongyang, for its part, did not provide official information regarding the number of deaths.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un dismissed the Minister of Public Security and the heads of several provincial committees, holding them responsible for the serious damage caused by heavy rains.
Kim also visited flooded areas in the northwest of the country on Sunday, where he "personally supervised the rescue and evacuation operations" of the population.
The "record levels" of rain on Saturday left about 5,000 residents of Sinuiju and Uiju stranded, and the North Korean army sent helicopters and boats to rescue them.
