South Korea is mulling to partially lift the ban on export of medical masks to provide them to the Korean War veterans located abroad, South Korean media reported, citing an anonymous source of the country's Foreign Ministry
MOSCOW (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 20th April, 2020) South Korea is mulling to partially lift the ban on export of medical masks to provide them to the Korean War veterans located abroad, South Korean media reported, citing an anonymous source of the country's Foreign Ministry.
In early March, the South Korean government banned export of medical masks and set strict limits on domestic pricing in a bid to ensure fair distribution of protective equipment amid the COVID-19 epidemic.
"The war veterans are old and susceptible to the virus. We have provided various forms of support to them each year, and this year, discussions are under way over the provision of masks," the source was quoted as saying by the Yonhap news agency.
According to the official, as cited in the report, the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs and the Ministry of food and Drug Safety are now in talks over the possibility of making masks for foreign veterans an exemption from the export restrictions.
The official was further quoted as saying that the South Korean government "cannot but give priority to [the Korean War veterans] in the provision of masks overseas."
�The devastating Korean War lasted from 1950 to 1953, amid the Cold War. In 1950, an international command was authorized by the UN Security Council to be formed and deployed in the Korean peninsula with soldiers from 21 countries.
