Japan searching for crew of sunken North Korean boat

Japanese authorities are looking for crew members of a North Korean fishing boat that sunk near Japan’s northwestern coast. According to the officials, four patrol vessels and two aircraft went searching for the crew members of the capsized boat on October 16. North Korean boats often enter Yamatotai area, off Japan's northern coast of the Noto Peninsula, known for its rich fishing grounds.

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Size of the crew not known

Another North Korean boat informed the Japanese fishing office about the incident after which coast guard patrol boats and Japanese fisheries started the search operation. There has not been any information regarding the size of the crew or the reason behind the accident. It is also not clear whether the boat had entered Japan’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), where the countries have exclusive rights to marine resources. Japan has disputes over the boundaries of the EEZ with Korea, Russia and China.

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Another incident involving North Korean fishermen

Earlier in October, Japanese authorities rescued North Korean fishermen after their vessel collided with a Japanese fisheries boat, and sank. At first, they thought there were 20 fishermen who were thrown into the sea after the accident, but later they rescued 60 fishermen. The officials claimed that they didn’t arrest any of the fishermen as there was no way to establish the illegality after the boat sank. 

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Handed over the fishermen

The regional office of the coast guard in Niigata notified North Korea’s rescue coordination center and handed the fishermen to another North Korean boat. The office also said that the fishermen were safe healthwise. After the incident, Japan’s Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said that the government will take measures to prevent poaching. “We will resolutely respond to prevent poaching by foreign fishing boats in the Japanese exclusive economic zone,” he said. The patrolling has increased after a surge in North Korean poachers.

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(With Inputs from Agencies)