The move comes as the Trump administration seeks to tighten sanctions as part of its maximum-pressure campaign during nuclear negotiations.
WASHINGTON — The Trump administration has barred American aid workers from going to North Korea as it pressures Pyongyang to dismantle the country’s nuclear weapons program, according to humanitarian groups and a former United States ambassador.
Sanctions imposed by the United Nations last winter have already forced aid groups to severely limit some activities, such as shipping farming equipment into the country. North Korea is one of the world’s poorest nations, and its citizens grapple with food shortages.
The moves by the Trump administration seek to tighten sanctions as part of its maximum-pressure campaign during nuclear negotiations, as well as sever nongovernment exchanges between Americans and North Koreans.
President Trump met with Kim Jong-un, the North Korean leader, in June and has said he plans to hold a second summit meeting soon. Mike Pompeo, the secretary of state, discussed that coming meeting and prospects of denuclearization on a trip this month to Pyongyang.
It was not the first time the Trump administration has cut off humanitarian aid during diplomatic negotiations. Over the last several months, American officials ended civilian aid to Palestinians in hopes of coercing Palestinian officials into peace negotiations with Israel.
Since last month, the State Department has refused to grant special permission to aid workers to travel to North Korea. It had done so in some cases in the year since the Trump administration enacted a general ban in September 2017 on Americans traveling to North Korea.
Barring aid workers from traveling affects humanitarian programs in North Korea, including efforts to alleviate tuberculosis and provide medical training and farming assistance.
“People are suffering,” said Robert King, a former American special envoy for human rights in North Korea. “It’s not the same as limiting luxury goods for the elite or reducing access to military goods. The idea of focusing effort and time on limiting humanitarian services strikes me as being totally counterproductive.”
Asked for comment, the State Department said it was still reviewing exceptions to the general travel ban “on a case-by-case basis, taking into account a range of factors.”
A dozen American nonprofit groups work regularly in North Korea. None have a permanent presence there, and must travel back and forth to do their work.
