Seoul, February 22 (QNA) - The foreign ministers of South Korea and China will hold talks in Seoul late next week, a diplomatic source said Wednesday, as Seoul is ratcheting up pressure on Beijing to avoid forced repatriation of North Korean defectors. Chinese Foreign Minister Yang Jiechi will visit Seoul and hold talks with South Korean Foreign Minister Kim Sung-hwan on March 2, the source said on the condition of anonymity.
"The two nations will soon announce the date for the foreign ministers' talks," the source said, adding the issue of North Korean defectors detained in China will top the agenda at the upcoming talks, South Korea's news agency (Yonhap) reported.
The forthcoming talks between Kim and Yang are also aimed at arranging agenda as South Korean President Lee Myung-bak and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao are planning to hold a summit on the sidelines of the Nuclear Security Summit, scheduled for March 26-27 in Seoul, the source said.
South Korea has said it will raise the issue of North Korean defectors detained in China at a meeting of the U.N. refugee agency next week.
Seoul has repeatedly called on Beijing not to send back North Korean defectors held in China to their communist homeland, but it has grown frustrated with Beijing's longstanding policy of turning a blind eye to its calls. About 30 North Korean defectors were reportedly caught by Chinese authorities this month and are awaiting repatriation to the North.
Also on Wednesday, President Lee urged China to deal with North Korean defectors in accordance with international norms.
"As long as defectors are not criminals, it would be right for China to deal with them in accordance with international standards," Lee said during a special news conference marking the fourth anniversary this week of his inauguration.
Tens of thousands of North Korean defectors are believed to be hiding in China, hoping to travel to Thailand or other Southeast Asian countries before resettling in South Korea, home to more than 23,000 North Korean defectors.
North Korean defectors face harsh punishments and even execution after being repatriated from China, which does not recognize them as asylum seekers, according to defectors in South Korea and human rights activists.  (QNA)