S Korea fires warning shot at North's vessels

The South Korean navy has fired warning shots at North Korean fishing
vessels that crossed their disputed Yellow Sea border, officials say.

An official with South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff told the
Associated Press that no North Korean navy ships were involved in
Friday's incident and the South Korean shots did not hit the fishing
boats.

Officials said the North Korean boats retreated after the shots were fired.

"Our naval patrol boats twice fired machine gun rounds at the fishing
vessels. Afterwards the North Korean vessels retreated to their
territory," a South Korean defence ministry spokesperson told the AFP
news agency.

The incident was the latest in a series of incursions by North Korean fishing vessels in recent weeks.

Earlier on Friday, South Korea's Yonhap news agency had quoted an
unidentified senior military official as saying the navy would take
action if the incursions continued.

"If North Korean boats repeatedly cross [the border] for fishing, the
military will promptly and sternly respond, without hesitation," the
official said.

The de-facto maritime boundary between the two Koreas - the Northern
Limit Line - is not recognised by Pyongyang, which argues it was
unilaterally drawn by the US-led United Nations forces after the 1950-53
Korean War.

Violence often erupts in the seafood rich waters claimed by both
countries. Boats routinely jostle for position during crab-catching
season, and three deadly naval clashes since 1999 have taken a few dozen
lives.

الموضوع الأصلي : S Korea fires warning shot at North's vessels

المصدر : ملتقى الجزائريين والعرب