군경•유엔사, 한강하구 中어선 퇴거작전…1953년 이후 처음
The only remaining option to repel Chinese fishing boats illegally harvesting in South Korea-controlled waters.
South Korea and the UN Command forces deployed troops to the area today... after years of failed efforts to solve the issue diplomatically.
It's the first military operation conducted in the area since 1953.
Our national defense correspondent Kim Hyun-bin files this report.
South Korea and the UN Command have launched a crackdown on illegal Chinese fishing in the Han River estuary.
"Our military police have been dispatched today to the Han River estuary to pull out all illegal Chinese fishing boats."
South Korea's defense ministry said Friday a 24 man-strong military police team and four speed boats have been dispatched to the area.
This is the first time a military operation has been conducted in the estuary since the armistice agreement was signed in 1953, ending the hostilities in the Korean War.
Under the armistice agreement, the only ships allowed in the Han River estuary are those that are registered with the military armistice commissions of either South or North Korea.
It's also the first the South Korean military and the UNC have collaborated to drive foreign vessels out of the military buffer zone, which is considered neutral territory.
Illegal Chinese fishing in the Han River estuary has increased dramatically since 2014.
Only three boats crossed into the zone in 2014, and by 2015 the number had risen to 120.
But the number of boats has more than quadrupled this year, with over 520 vessels detected in the months from January to May alone.
The South Korean crackdown team consists of military police, Coast Guard officers, a translator and a member of the UN Command, and they will use a UNC flag for their operations.
Chinese finishing boats will be given an verbal warning to leave the area.
If they don't comply, the crackdown team will be able to arrest the fisherman.
There will also be choppers and warships on standby near the area in the event of any skirmishes or provocations from North Korea.
Kim Hyun-bin, Arirang News.
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