Australia's foreign affairs department has admitted it knows nothing about the whereabouts or condition of missionary John Short, who is being detained in North Korea.
The 75-year-old Christian missionary arrived in Pyongyang in mid-February and was taken away by police shortly after, allegedly for leaving religious pamphlets at a Buddhist temple.
Australia has no diplomatic representation in North Korea, and has been seeking information about Mr Short through the Swedish embassy in Pyongyang.
But so far, inquiries by the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade about his health or whereabouts have turned up nothing.
"We have yet to hear from Mr Short," DFAT consular head Justin Brown told a Senate estimates hearing on Thursday.
"We do not know anything about the conditions in which he's being held."
The government has sought assistance from other countries to exert pressure on North Korea, particularly the US which has experience with wayward missionaries in the reclusive Asian country.
North Korea is also holding US citizen Kenneth Bae, described by a North Korean court as a militant Christian evangelist.
He was sentenced to 15 years hard labour on charges of seeking to topple the government.
Mr Short, who was making his second trip to North Korea, could face a similar fate.
