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By Micah McCartney
Reporter
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South Korea has released footage of its coast guard catching Chinese nationals after a boat chase, allegedly while trying to enter the country.
Why It Matters
Chinese nationals make up the overwhelming majority of illegal maritime entries across the Yellow Sea into South Korea. According to South Korean authorities, 52 of 54 people detained over the past five years for seaborne illegal entry were Chinese citizens, 40 of whom landed along the west coast.
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The latest interception comes amid strained relations between Seoul and Beijing, following weeks of anti-China protests in South Korea and ongoing military cooperation with the country's defense treaty ally the United States.
Newsweek reached out to the Chinese Foreign Ministry and the South Korean coast guard via email for comment.
What to Know
A military radar system detected the unidentified boat approximately 25 miles northwest of Gaeuido Island, off the southwest province of Chungcheong, at around 11:40 p.m. on Sunday, according to local media reports.
In response, the coast guard dispatched eight patrol vessels, and the military separately deployed two boats.
The boat reportedly ignored orders to stop and led government forces on a two-hour chase. Government personnel finally caught up with the recreational vessel at 1:43 a.m., 25 miles northwest of Gaeuido Island.
Coast guard video shared with KBS News shows South Korean personnel closing in, including an aircraft shining a spotlight on the boat. The boat contained eight Chinese occupants, including one who reportedly jumped or fell into the sea before being rescued soon afterward.
According to investigators, the occupants were seeking to enter the country to find work and had set sail from Weihai, Shandong Province, disguising themselves as anglers with fishing rods.
South Korean President Lee Jae-myung has sought to improve relations with China, strained by a range of issues, from illegal Chinese fishing in South Korea's exclusive economic zone to China's placement of a large metal structure in the Yellow Sea, in a joint fishing zone established to manage the countries' overlapping maritime claims.
In a working-level meeting in August, the two sides agreed to boost cooperation on tackling illegal fishing, with China agreeing to accept all Chinese vessels detained in South Korea for fishing violations.
Meanwhile, recent anti-China protests, sparked by Seoul's move to greenlight a trial program allowing visa-free entry for Chinese tour groups, have added to the friction in Beijing ties.
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China's embassy has urged tourists in South Korea to be vigilant and called on the country's authorities to guarantee their safety.
Lee has ordered a crackdown on the protests, last week warning that “rumors and hate speech targeting specific countries" must not be tolerated and that it could damage the country's international standing.
The 4.6 million Chinese who traveled to South Korea last year accounted for 28 percent of all international visitors, according to statistics from the Korea Tourism Organization.
What People Have Said
Kang Cheon-su, head of the Taean County Coast Guard’s Foreign Affairs Division, told KBS News: “(In the past) some had been forcibly deported and could no longer re-enter legally, so they resorted to illegal entry. Taean is also the closest point from China.”
What’s Next
The South Korean coast guard said it plans to seek arrest warrants for the eight Chinese nationals under the Immigration Control Act.
Officials noted a growing shift in tactics—from the use of larger cargo and fishing vessels to smaller recreational boats for direct landings—and vowed to tighten maritime patrols and surveillance along the west coast.
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