South Korea Offers Aid to Flood-Stricken North Korea

South Korea on Thursday offered to send humanitarian aid to North Korea after the isolated North reported extensive damage from floods in towns along its western border with China.

North Korea did not immediately respond. If the North accepts the offer, it could lead to the first official contact between​ the two Koreas in several years. After the collapse of direct diplomacy between its leader, Kim Jong-un, and the U.S. president at the time, Donald J. Trump, North Korea ​in 2020 cut off all official channels of dialogue with ​the South.

In recent days, North Korea​ has reported ​severe flood​s near the estuary where the Yalu River empties into the Yellow Sea after flowing along the North Korea-China border.​ State media reported that roads, railways and more than 4,100 homes were submerged, along with large swaths of farmland. Mr. Kim​ visited the area, ordering his military to use helicopters to evacuate ​thousands of villagers isolated by ​the flooding​.

“We offer sincere condolences for North Koreans who have suffered severe damage from torrential rains,” the South Korean government said in a statement on Thursday. “We express our willingness to quickly provide urgently needed items for the victims out of humanitarianism and compatriotic love for the North Korean people.”

The statement added that South Korea was ready for dialogue through the two Korean Red Cross societies to determine the size and other details of humanitarian aid​. South Korean officials said that they were willing to provide food and medicine.

The offer was an unusual overture of reconciliation on the divided Korean Peninsula. As recently as a week ago, the two countries were accusing each other of “crude and dirty” ​provocations​, as North Korea