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| China-Japan-Koreas |
| N. Korea pressures S. Korea to repatriate defectors |
| 2011-04-02 |
| SEOUL, April 1 (Yonhap) -- In another unsuccessful attempt to have four of its recent defectors repatriated by South Korea, North Korea on Friday demanded that the two sides hold Red Cross talks to discuss arrangements for their return, the Unification Ministry here said. The four were among 31 North Koreans who strayed across the inter-Korean border in the Yellow Sea on a wooden boat in early February. The remaining 27 were repatriated to the North by sea earlier this week, in accordance with their wishes. Before the repatriation, North Korea had squared off with South Korea over the defectors, demanding they be returned along with the 27 and accusing the South of forcing them into defection. In a message to its South Korean counterpart on Friday, the North's Red Cross demanded for the second time this week that the sides hold talks to discuss the repatriation of the four. The message came just hours after the South Korean side sent a formal message of refusal to the North. "The North Korean side expressed regret for our refusing to hold working-level talks" concerning the defectors, the Red Cross here said in a statement to reporters, adding the South remains unchanged in its position not to negotiate over the fate of four. |
| Posted by:Steve White |