North Korean vessels have violated the western sea border with South Korea a total of 338 times over the last 10 years, a ruling party lawmaker said Thursday, citing data from the military.
Between 2001 and September of this year, the North's patrol boats made 113 violations of the Northern Limit Line in the Yellow Sea while fishing boats were responsible for the remaining 225 intrusions, Rep. Chung Hee-soo of the ruling Saenuri Party said, citing an analysis of data provided by the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
However, the South's Navy only fired warning shots toward intruding vessels 13 times during that period, the lawmaker said, accusing the military of reacting too softly to such violations and calling for sterner responses.
Tensions around the sea border escalated in recent weeks as North Korean fishing boats made a series of violations, with the South's Navy firing a barrage of warning shots to chase North Korean boats away.
Areas near the border have been the scene of a number of bloody inter-Korean clashes. The two sides fought naval gun-battles in the area in 1999, 2002 and 2009. In 2010, the North torpedoed a South Korean warship in the area and shelled a South Korean border island.
North Korea has never recognized the maritime boundary, which was drawn unilaterally by the U.S.-led United Nations Command when the 1950-53 Korean War ended, and demands that the line be drawn further south. (Yonhap)
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