Urgent Moments of North Korean Ship's NLL Infringement

North Korean Vessel Intrusion Prompts Deployment of Air Force Fighters and Marine Corps

North Korea is also highly likely to provoke not only on land but also in areas such as the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea or the eastern front in a 'Seongdonggyeokseo' manner.

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] It has been revealed that the situation became a hair-trigger moment involving even our Air Force fighter jets when a North Korean vessel violated the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea.

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on the 24th, the North Korean merchant ship Mupo-ho crossed the NLL around 3:42 a.m. near 27 km northwest of Baengnyeongdo in the West Sea. The North Korean vessel penetrated about 3.3 km south of the NLL for approximately 40 minutes. This is the first time in 5 years and 9 months that a North Korean merchant ship has crossed the NLL since an incident in the East Sea in January 2017.

The military continuously issued the first warning communication before Mupo-ho crossed the NLL while heading south. Despite this, when the vessel crossed the line, a second warning communication was issued. When Mupo-ho still did not change its course, the military fired warning shots using M60 machine guns, 10 rounds each in the first and second warnings, totaling 20 rounds.

Subsequently, around 4:20 a.m., the North Korean merchant ship changed its course and moved north of the NLL. The military then judged that Mupo-ho was sailing past the end of the NLL and, judging by its direction, was heading toward China.

The military believes that the North Korean vessel intentionally crossed the NLL. It is not considered an accidental crossing due to distress or engine failure. In March this year, a North Korean vessel mistakenly crossed the NLL near Baengnyeongdo, was captured by our military, investigated, and then repatriated the next day.

On this day, our military responded by mobilizing several naval vessels including navy escort ships, patrol forces such as Air Force KF-16s, and joint forces including the Marine Corps to prepare for contingencies. Our vessels approached Mupo-ho to within 1 km, while the North Korean side issued so-called “unjust communications” warning “Do not approach North Korean waters.” Unjust communications are unilateral transmissions of “unjust” content not recognized by military authorities. North Korea reportedly warns South Korean vessels to “withdraw” whenever they approach the West Sea Northern Limit Line (NLL).

After Mupo-ho returned north of the NLL, around 5:14 a.m., North Korea fired 10 rounds of multiple rocket launchers into the maritime buffer zone north of the West Sea NLL near Jangsan Cape, Hwanghae Nam-do, again violating the September 19 military agreement. Since the rocket fire was somewhat distant from the NLL waters where Mupo-ho intruded, the two incidents were not directly linked.

The North Korean General Staff issued a statement around 6:07 a.m. under the spokesperson’s name, stating, “Around 3:50 a.m. today, a South Korean puppet navy escort ship belonging to the 2nd Fleet crossed our maritime military demarcation line by 2.5 to 5 km about 20 km northwest of Baengnyeongdo under the pretext of cracking down on an unidentified vessel, raising a maritime confrontation involving ‘warning shots.’”

Meanwhile, Mupo-ho shares its name with a ship that in September 1991 was carrying Scud missiles to Syria but failed to deliver them due to surveillance by the U.S., Israel, and others, and returned home. The Mupo-ho that crossed the NLL this time is about 5,000 tons, has the appearance of a bulk carrier, and the military identified it as Mupo-ho using identification equipment.

The military is examining various possibilities, including whether the merchant ship Mupo-ho acted as a disguised vessel with other purposes, or if the intrusion was intended to provoke a response from our military to accumulate justification for a high-level armed demonstration such as a localized provocation.