Delayed by sanctions, border checks, first medical aid trickles into North Korea

FILE PHOTO: A woman walks past a TV broadcasting file footage for a news report on North Korea firing an unidentified projectile, in Seoul, South Korea, March 9, 2020. REUTERS/Heo Ran/File Photo

SEOUL (Reuters) - The first shipments of international medical aid are due to arrive at North Korea's borders this week to shore up its defences against the coronavirus, but strict border controls could mean the stream of supplies remains a trickle.

Some aid organisations had to get emergency sanction exemptions from the United Nations to clear the way for the shipments and are now navigating North Korea's border controls imposed in a bid to shut out the virus.