SEOUL, March 6 (UPI) -- North Korea has ordered the children of its diplomats overseas to return home in an apparent move to prevent defections, a Seoul daily said Tuesday.
The North's ruling Workers' Party has recently issued a directive for diplomats and representatives overseas to send their children home within this month, excluding those aged between 11 and 13, the JoongAng Ilbo newspaper said, citing a source well-versed in North Korean affairs.
It is the first time North Korea has taken such a measure since the collapse of the Soviet-led bloc in the early 1990s, the daily said.
The reason remains unclear, but the daily said the measure seems aimed at preventing defection of diplomats at a time when North Korea is seeking to improve ties with the United States and Japan.
Under the measure, some 300 North Korean children should be sent home, the newspaper said.
