S. Korea keeping close tabs on reported repatriation of N.K. defectors from China: minister

South Korea's unification minister said Wednesday the government is closely looking into a media report that China forcefully repatriated over 600 North Korean defectors earlier this week.
"We are keeping close tabs on the issue," Unification Minister Kim Yung-ho said during a parliamentary audit of the ministry in charge of inter-Korean affairs.
"We are continuing to verify the facts," he said, adding the ministry expressed its position on several occasions via diplomatic channels that China should not forcibly repatriate defectors."
A local media outlet reported earlier in the day that around 600 North Korean defectors detained in China were sent back to their reclusive home country Monday evening.
If the report proves true, it would mark China's first large-scale repatriation of North Korean refugees since Pyongyang recently opened its borders after three years and seven months of COVID-19 lockdowns.
Elizabeth Salmon, the U.N. special rapporteur for North Korea's human rights, has estimated that more than 2,000 North Korean defectors are currently detained in China. Concerns have grown over their fate, as North Korea has started to lift border closures. (Yonhap)
相关文章
LG Electronics CEO to present AI vision at CES
LG Electronics CEO Cho Joo-wan will lay out the blueprints for the home appliance giant’s vision and2023-12-01Kakao Mobility announces plan to overhaul commission system amid monopoly criticism
Kakao Mobility Corp., the operator of the nation's leading taxi-hailing service, said Wednesday2023-12-01Davichi to return with new single next month
K-pop pop-ballad duo Davichi is returning with a new single on Nov. 15, according to WakeOne Enterta2023-12-01北 ‘환적지 이동’ 정황…석도 인근서 10월에만 10건 포착
지난달 29일 북한 석도 인근 해상에서 선박 간 환적 2건(원 안)이 포착됐다. 사진 플래닛 랩스, VOA 북한이 자국 영해 내 새로운 장소에서 선박 간 환적을 벌이는 정황이 포착2023-12-01- DAY6 will hold a year-end concert with all four members present, a first in four years, according to2023-12-01
[Herald Review] ‘Zzz’ lulls audience to sleep through onstage performance
A new contemporary performance taking place in Seoul gently lulls its audience to sleep.The three-ho2023-12-01
最新评论