North Korean soldier rescued in South in coma

SEOUL, Dec 13 (Reuters) One of the two North Korean soldiers found adrift in the South's waters over the weekend is in a coma and the other wants to return home, South Korean military officials said today.

The two were suffering from frostbite, hypothermia and malnutrition and have been receiving treatment at a South Korean military hospital, an official with the Joint Chiefs of Staff said by telephone.

''We do not yet know how they came to be in South Korean waters, but it appears they were adrift for several days,'' the official said, adding that further questioning of the soldiers was planned.

The two were found off South Korea's north-eastern port of Sokcho aboard a small wooden sailing boat that did not have an engine. Local media said they were likely both under 20 years old.

If the soldier wants to return to the North, the South will work with authorities in Pyongyang to secure a passage, the official said.

The two Koreas are technically still at war because the 1950-1953 Korean War ended in a truce and not with a peace treaty.

REUTERS LL DS1105