The government on Friday officially announced plans to send 500,000 tons of rice as additional food aid to North Korea.
The plan, endorsed by Cabinet ministers and the ruling Liberal Democratic Party's decision-making executive council in the morning, was formally announced by Chief Cabinet Secretary Hidenao Nakagawa in the afternoon.
"I decided to offer substantial assistance based on my judgment that now is the crucial time (for North Korea)," Foreign Minister Yohei Kono told a news conference, citing a dramatic change in the situation on the Korean Peninsula after the historic North-South summit meeting in June.