The South Korean government is sending tens of thousands of tangerines from the southern resort island of Jeju to North Korea.
Seoul's gesture comes a couple of months after the North gave South Korea two tons of pine mushrooms.
Our Blue House correspondent Hwang Hojun reports.
200 tons of Jeju delights.
20,000 boxes,... ten kilograms of tangerines in each,... divvied up into four military cargo planes,... and sent to North Korea in a total of four shipments until Monday.
South Korea's Presidential Office of Cheong Wa Dae says they're a return present from the top office to North Korea after the North sent two tons of Songi or pine mushrooms to Seoul in September following the third summit between President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un,... which was held in Pyongyang.
The officials tasked with overseeing the tangy delivery are Vice Unification Minister Chun Hae-sung and Presidential Secretary for Unification Policy Suh Ho.
The Blue House spokesperson said Sunday that tangerines were chosen because not only are they in season right now,... but also because tangerines are rare in North Korea.
He said the Blue House decided on such a huge amount as it wanted as many North Koreans as possible to taste them.
This is the biggest shipment of South Korean goods to North Korea since 2010, which is when inter-Korean relations went spiraling down following North Korea's attack on a South Korean warship in March that year,... killing 46 sailors.
Asked whether the shipment breaches international sanctions on North Korea, the Blue House asserted it does not as the tangerines are merely a reciprocal gift with no strings attached.
Hwang Hojun, Arirang News.