Forty-nine North Koreans have defected to South Korea this year, many of them from Siberian logging camps. The North's communist government claims they were kidnapped by South Korean agents.
"Since they are engaged in the abduction of our citizens, we have the legitimate right to take a strong countermeasure against it," a North Korean government agency said, the official Korea Central News Agency reported.
South Korea has said that it would accept escapees from the camps, which are run by North Korea under lease from Russia, for humanitarian reasons.
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