SEOUL, Dec. 10 (Yonhap) -- Nepalese authorities have detained two South Koreans on suspicion of involvement in the case of a missing North Korean, a foreign ministry official said Friday.

   "We cannot confirm the identities of the detainees or the details of the incident due to concerns about their safety and the safety of their families," the official said on customary condition of anonymity.

   "The government, through the South Korean embassy in Kathmandu, is contacting relevant Nepalese authorities and requesting consular interviews," the official added.

   Japan's Kyodo News, quoting a Nepalese daily, reported earlier Friday that two South Koreans who live in Nepal were arrested last week following pressure from the North Korean embassy in Kathmandu to probe their links to a North Korean who recently disappeared from the South Asian country.

   Kyodo said the two South Koreans, married to Nepalese wives, are Choi Won-sup and Sun Hack-dal, according to police records.

   It also quoted the Nepalese report as saying that the North Korean national, named Yang Hyok-kae, could be a spy, and that the North Korean embassy may be worried about the possibility of defection and wants the South Koreans to be charged with kidnapping.

   The report also quoted an unnamed official as saying that Yang has crossed the border into New Delhi and that the South Korean detainees are aware of his moves.

   The North Korean embassy in Kathmandu told Kyodo that Yang was a visitor, not an embassy official, who has been missing for three weeks.

   hague@yna.co.kr
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