Five South Koreans have left China at the request of the Chinese authorities amid growing safety concerns in the border area with North Korea, a foreign ministry official said Thursday.
A local daily newspaper reported that China had asked around 10 South Korean nationals staying in the China-North Korea border region to leave their country, citing a heightened possibility that they could be abducted by the North. The ministry official said on condition of anonymity that five of them have already left China and the rest are also known to have left the border area as well.
"As far as we know, the remainder are also considering returning to South Korea sooner or later," he said.
Safety concerns over Koreans staying in the border area have risen amid tensions caused by the North's continued provocative acts, including its sixth nuclear test early last month, and apparently worsening ties between Pyongyang and Beijing. (Yonhap)
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