Four die in Korean clash over crab fishing
The sporadic crab war between North and South Korea flared up again yesterday, claiming four lives, infuriating the South which believed the North was trying to spoil its World Cup party and casting a shadow over new hopes of detente.
Two North Korean naval vessels, said to be accompanying a fleet of up to 30 fishing boats, crossed a disputed maritime border in the Yellow Sea, according to Seoul, and opened fire without warning when they were challenged by patrol boats from the South. The four men died when one of the Southern patrol boats sank: 18 sailors were injured and one was reported missing.
The area near the island of Yonpyong has seen previous confrontations as both sides escort their fishing boats to the crab fields. In 1999 an estimated 30 North Korean sailors died in an exchange of fire.
As South Korea prepared to meet Turkey in the play-off for third place in the World Cup, many felt that the North Koreans had timed their incursion with that in mind. Pyongyang has shown some games on its television services, but has not reported that South Korea is a co-host.
Seoul government analysts claim that the dispute over the crab fields is being used by hardline elements in Pyongyang to discredit peace efforts, although some previous incidents appear to be the result of actions on both sides.
The US recently announced that it was finally willing to hold high-level talks with the North, indicating that the tough posture towards Pyongyang adopted by the Bush administration is being eased.
South Korea's President Kim Dae-jung, whose 'sunshine policy' towards the North is making only limping progress, called an emergency meeting of his National Security Council yesterday, but urged its members to stay calm.
A week ago the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that the number of alleged violations of the maritime border - which Pyongyang refuses to recognise - had decreased markedly. North Korean incursions occurred 70 times in 1999, but there had been only ten so far this year.
Two North Korean naval vessels, said to be accompanying a fleet of up to 30 fishing boats, crossed a disputed maritime border in the Yellow Sea, according to Seoul, and opened fire without warning when they were challenged by patrol boats from the South. The four men died when one of the Southern patrol boats sank: 18 sailors were injured and one was reported missing.
The area near the island of Yonpyong has seen previous confrontations as both sides escort their fishing boats to the crab fields. In 1999 an estimated 30 North Korean sailors died in an exchange of fire.
As South Korea prepared to meet Turkey in the play-off for third place in the World Cup, many felt that the North Koreans had timed their incursion with that in mind. Pyongyang has shown some games on its television services, but has not reported that South Korea is a co-host.
Seoul government analysts claim that the dispute over the crab fields is being used by hardline elements in Pyongyang to discredit peace efforts, although some previous incidents appear to be the result of actions on both sides.
The US recently announced that it was finally willing to hold high-level talks with the North, indicating that the tough posture towards Pyongyang adopted by the Bush administration is being eased.
South Korea's President Kim Dae-jung, whose 'sunshine policy' towards the North is making only limping progress, called an emergency meeting of his National Security Council yesterday, but urged its members to stay calm.
A week ago the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that the number of alleged violations of the maritime border - which Pyongyang refuses to recognise - had decreased markedly. North Korean incursions occurred 70 times in 1999, but there had been only ten so far this year.
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