Ground zero : vimarsana.com

Ground zero
By John Burton
North Korea is ground zero for international humanitarian efforts. For the first time since foreign aid workers were allowed into the country following the great famine of the 1990s, which Pyongyang described as the Arduous March, no U.N. or NGO staff members reportedly remain in the country, due to local COVID-19 restrictions.
This situation creates an uncertain future for international assistance at a time when North Korea leader Kim Jong-un recently warned party officials that they would need to wage another more difficult Arduous March. His remarks suggest that the country faces serious economic problems as a result of Pyongyang closing the national borders in response to the threat posed by the COVID-19 pandemic.