Armed Chinese fishing boasts seized by coast guard—video

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday condemned illegal Chinese fishing in South Korean waters as “utterly unacceptable,” warning that future violators would face the seizure of their catch and stiff penalties.

The comments came after two Chinese vessels were caught allegedly operating illegally in the country’s maritime zone.

Why It Matters

Chinese nationals account for the overwhelming majority of illegal maritime entries into South Korean waters. A rise in recent years of Chinese fishing boats entering South Korea’s exclusive maritime zone has prompted Seoul to step up coast guard patrols. The issue has become a recurring point of friction between the two neighbors.

Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Embassy in South Korea and the South Korean Coast Guard by email with requests for comment outside of office hours.

What To Know

“This is utterly unacceptable,” the Chosun Daily quoted Lee as saying. He threatened to seize “enormous amounts of money” from crews caught fishing illegally in South Korea’s exclusive economic zone (EEZ), an area that extends 230 miles from the coast where Seoul alone is entitled to natural resources under international maritime law.

The president’s remarks came after two 300-ton Chinese fishing boats were found operating inside South Korea’s EEZ, an encounter captured in footage shared last week by South Korea’s Maeil Broadcasting Network. The report did not specify the exact date when the incident took place.

Crew members armed with iron bars reportedly ignored the coast guard’s orders to stop, attempted to evade boarding by dropping their nets and zigzagging, and had erected crude steel barriers along the hull to frustrate boarding attempts.

Special coast guard forces eventually managed to board the vessels and bring them to a halt, per the report. Onboard, officers found two tons of sardines and other fish caught without a license. They also discovered 1-inch fishing nets—much smaller than the standard 21-inch size and illegal because they catch juvenile fish and damage marine ecosystems.

The coast guard said it was escorting the crew back to Mokpo, a city in Jeolla Province, for further questioning.

In August, Beijing and Seoul agreed to step up joint efforts to crack down on illegal fishing in the Yellow Sea, with China promising to accept Chinese vessels apprehended by South Korea for violations. However, South Korean officials have continued to urge China to impose stricter penalties on vessels that operate illegally near the Northern Limit Line, the de facto maritime border with North Korea.

What People Are Saying

Kang Seung-nam, captain of Patrol Vessel 3015 of the Mokpo City Coast Guard, told MBN: “They usually show up at night or when the weather gets bad, but this time the weather was nice and it was daytime.”

South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said Tuesday: “We must make it clear that if they enter Korean waters and engage in illegal fishing, they will be caught and have enormous amounts of money confiscated.”