Foreign Minister Song Min-soon said Wednesday that the government is working with Thailand to end the hunger strike by North Korean escapees who are currently in a Thai prison for illegal immigrants.

In a related move, a Seoul official denied civic group claims that the South Korean government is delaying the escapees' entry into the South, stressing that the policy of protecting them has not changed.

The official noted that the number of North Korean defectors flowing into Thailand is rising sharply, adding that Seoul is making efforts to quickly transfer them to South Korea.