A North Korean fishing boat has been sent back after crossing over the Northern Limit Line (NLL) yesterday,
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) announced today.
The boat was discovered near Baekryong Island at 5.26pm on
Thursday after drifting 1.8km outside of its territorial waters. It was finally
boarded around 8pm after ignoring repeated calls by the South Korean navy to
retreat.
The three crew on board were investigated and released after
expressing no desire to go to the South.
“Visibility was poor in waters east of Baekryong Island
due to fog, and there were strong ebb currents at the time of the
seizure,” a JCS official stated.
The incident echoes a similar case on December 30th when
a North Korean fishing boat was found adrift after its engine failed.
The crew were repatriated shortly after
being picked up by a navy patrol.
