Jeong Eui-yong: "North Korea did not request the extradition of 'heinous criminals'... We first inquired about their willingness to accept from the North side"

Jeong Eui-yong Denies Departure Rumors Once Again

The Ministry of Unification released photos on the 12th taken in November 2019 at Panmunjom while repatriating two North Korean fishermen. At that time, the government stated that the two North Korean sailors had killed 16 colleagues, defected, and expressed their intention to seek asylum, but they were expelled to North Korea through Panmunjom. The photo shows the North Korean fishermen struggling and refusing repatriation. 2022.7.12 [Provided by the Ministry of Unification. Resale and DB prohibited] [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] Jeong Eui-yong, former director of the Blue House National Security Office, stated on the 17th regarding the 'Defection Fishermen Repatriation Incident' that "There was no request from North Korea to repatriate these heinous criminals (defecting fishermen) first."

Jeong, through Yoon Gun-young, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea and former director of the Blue House Situation Room, released a statement this morning saying, "However, when deporting, it is necessary to confirm the receiving country's willingness, so we first inquired about North Korea's intention."

Earlier, there were reports that Jeong had left for the United States, but Yoon officially denied the departure rumors on his Facebook, calling them "clear fake news" and saying, "How could we send someone who is perfectly fine in Korea to the United States out of nowhere?"

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