N. Korea designates 'naval firing zones' along sea border with S. Korea

N Korea-naval firings


SEOUL, Feb. 4 (Yonhap) -- North Korea has raised the possibility of a further
show of force in the East and Yellow seas by temporarily designating five regions
along the eastern and western maritime borders with South Korea as "naval firing
zones," a government source said Thursday.

The source said the North unilaterally designated four areas in the Yellow Sea
and one in the East Sea earlier in the day. He added that the areas overlap
firing zones set by the communist country from last Sunday through Tuesday.
Pyongyang warned ships to stay clear of these areas from Saturday through Monday,
hinting that it may hit these areas with artillery fired from the coast, as it
did late last month.
The ministry, meanwhile, said that it has not detected any special activity that
may indicate the North's imminent firing of artillery or missiles.
From Jan. 27-29, the North is estimated to have fired around 350 rounds in the
Yellow Sea in waters north of the Northern Limit Line (NLL), which acts as the de
facto maritime borer between the two Koreas.
The NLL was unilaterally drawn by the U.S.-led U.N. Command at the end of the
Korean War, and the communist North has refused to honor it. The two sides fought
bloody skirmishes near the border in 1999, 2002 and in November last year.
yonngong@yna.co.kr
(END)

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