An agreement on the transfer of sentenced persons came into effect between India and South Korea, continuing a string of judicial agreements between the two countries.

The agreement to deport each other’s citizens so that they may stand trial and imprisonment in their respective countries came into effect on June 18.

India Ambassador Vishnu Prakash and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade’s director general of international legal affairs held an exchange of instruments of ratification on the same day. The agreement was signed by President Lee Myung-bak during a state visit to New Delhi in March 2010.

“It is reflective of India and South Korea’s confidence in each other’s transparent legal systems and democratic credentials,” said the Indian Embassy in a press release.

The agreement will allow defendants to serve the sentence in the familiar environment of their home countries and speed up their social rehabilitation, even if crimes were committed abroad.