S. Korea pledges $200,000 aid for volcano eruption relief in Tonga

SEOUL, Jan. 20 (Yonhap) -- South Korea will send $200,000 worth of emergency humanitarian relief to Tonga to help the South Pacific island recover from the aftermath of an underwater volcano eruption, the foreign ministry said Thursday.

The ministry said it will consider additional assistance after assessing the scale of damage and subsequent needs.

Foreign aid planes have arrived in Tonga, bringing much-needed supplies for the Pacific nation which was left devastated by a volcanic eruption and subsequent tsunami on Saturday.

The United Nations said emergency teams are on standby to provide humanitarian assistance to thousands of victims.

ejkim@yna.co.kr
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