Two convicted South Korean prisoners in China have recently been transferred to serve out their remaining sentences in their homeland under a prisoner transfer agreement between the two countries, officials said Tuesday.

   The two, aged 61 and 69, were sent from a prison in the northeast Chinese city of Shenyang to South Korea last week, according to officials at the Korean Consulate General in Shenyang.

The prisoners, whose identities were withheld, have been serving time for drug-related crimes.

   They marked the fourth and fifth cases of prisoner transfer under the 2008 agreement. Previously, two South Korean prisoners were transferred in 2010 and one in 2011. No Chinese prisoners have been transferred home under the agreement, according to officials.

   Prisoners can file for transfer for advanced ages, health problems and other reasons. Transfers can take place when there is consent from the two governments. A total of 322 South Koreans are doing prison time in China.

   In 2005, South Korea acceded to the 64-nation European Convention on the Transfer of Sentenced Persons. The country also has bilateral prisoner transfer pacts with Mongolia, Vietnam, India, Thailand and Hong Kong. (Yonhap News)