SEOUL, Nov. 26 (UPI) -- South Korea says it formally demanded Tuesday North Korea release a South Korean citizen detained in the Communist country for nearly three weeks.
In a formal statement, the Ministry of Unification asked Pyongyang to provide personal information about the person they are holding, Yonhap News Agency reported.
North Korea said Nov. 7 it had captured a spy working for the South's National Intelligence Service as he tried to enter Pyongyang. North Korean officials have repeatedly refused to identify the person or state if he is facing criminal charges.
NIS has denied the man is one of its agents. Christian groups say he may be a missionary working mostly in China.
The Unification Ministry said Pyongyang had refused to accept Seoul's request for the man's release sent through the Korea National Red Cross.
"Such behavior can only be construed as a sign that the North is unlawfully and forcefully holding a South Korean national," a ministry official said.
North Korea has agreed to hold working-level talks about easing restrictions on travel, communications and customs at the Kaesong Industrial Complex, the official said. The facility, just over the border in North Korea, is jointly operated by the two countries.
