The Unification Ministry said on Wednesday that it will wait until more facts become known before taking necessary measures regarding a South Korean fisheries ministry official who was presumed to have been found in North Korean waters after going missing. 

The South Korean ministry announced the stance, pointing to ongoing efforts by related authorities to gather and analyze information. 

The Ministry of National Defense said earlier that it was alerted by the Coast Guard on noon Monday that the Oceans and Fisheries Ministry official disappeared from the ship in the West Sea about two kilometers south of Soyeonpyeong Island. 

The Defense Ministry said it obtained information suggesting that the official was discovered in North Korean waters the next day, adding that an investigation is under way to determine how the official went missing and to verify his whereabouts. 

The official was identified only as a 47-year-old working at the West Sea Fisheries Management Service under the Oceans and Fisheries Ministry and is known to be alive thus far. 

The South Korean military and police, which carried out search operations on Monday, believe ocean currents may have swept the official into North Korean waters but are not ruling out the possibility of defection.