The Battle of Yeongpyeong (or Second Battle of Yeonpyeong) () was a confrontation at sea between

North Korea North Korea, officially the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the northern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders China and Russia to the north at the Yalu River, Yalu (Amnok) an ...

n and

South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia. It constitutes the southern half of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and borders North Korea along the Korean Demilitarized Zone, with the Yellow Sea to the west and t ...

n patrol boats along a disputed

maritime boundary A maritime boundary is a conceptual division of Earth's water surface areas using physiographical or geopolitical criteria. As such, it usually bounds areas of exclusive national rights over mineral and biological resources,VLIZ Maritime Boun ...

near Yeonpyeong Island in the

Yellow Sea The Yellow Sea, also known as the North Sea, is a marginal sea of the Western Pacific Ocean located between mainland China and the Korean Peninsula, and can be considered the northwestern part of the East China Sea. Names It is one of four ...

in 2002. This followed a similar

confrontation Confrontation is an element of conflict wherein parties confront one another, directly engaging one another in the course of a dispute between them. A confrontation can be at any scale, between any number of people, between entire nations or cu ...

in 1999. Two North Korean patrol boats crossed the contested border and engaged two South Korean Chamsuri-class patrol boats. The North Koreans withdrew before South Korean reinforcements arrived.

Background

The Northern Limit Line is considered by South Korea to be the

between itself and North Korea, while North Korea disagrees and states that the boundary is farther south. North Korean fishing vessels often wander into the area and are frequently chased away by South Korean patrol vessels. Occasionally a North Korean patrol tries to enforce its southern claim by traversing the limit line. In 2002 one such incursion turned into a naval battle along the limit line.

Engagement

On 29 June 2002, a North Korean

patrol boat A patrol boat (also referred to as a patrol craft, patrol ship, or patrol vessel) is a relatively small naval ship, naval vessel generally designed for Coastal defence and fortification, coastal defence, Border control, border security, or law ...

crossed the northern limit line and was warned to turn back. Shortly afterward, a second North Korean patrol craft crossed the line and it was also warned to retreat across the line. The North Korean boats began threatening and harassing the South Korean vessels following them. After traveling south past the limit line, the North Korean vessels attacked the two South Korean patrol killer medium (PKM) boats that had been monitoring them. At 10:25, the vessel that first crossed the line opened fire with its 85 mm gun and scored a direct hit on the wheelhouse of PKM-357 causing several casualties. The two squadrons then began a general engagement. The South Koreans using their 40 and 20 mm guns against the North Korean RPGs, 85 mm, and 37 mm guns. About ten minutes later, two more PKMs and two corvettes reinforced the South Korean vessels and severely damaged one of the North Korean craft. Now heavily outnumbered and taking casualties, the North Korean vessels retreated back across the Limit Line at 10:59.

Aftermath

Both the North Korean and South Korean flotillas took casualties from the action. Thirteen North Koreans were killed and twenty five wounded. The South Koreans suffered six fatalities, four during the battle, one 83 days later from wounds suffered during the battle, and one found dead at sea after the battle. The dead were Lt. Cmdr. Yoon Yeong-ha, Jo Cheon-hyung, Seo Hu-won, and Hwang Do-hyeon (during the battle), Park Dong-hyeok (days later), and Han Sang-guk (found at sea); Eighteen others were injured. The damaged PKM-357 later sank while under tow, while the damaged North Korean vessel was able to limp its way back to port. Both sides laid blame on each other and South Korea demanded an apology from North Korea. According to a North Korean defector's statement in 2012, the North Korean patrol boat crewmembers involved in the battle suffered extensive splinter injuries from the South Korean "Devastator" shells. The injured North Koreans were reportedly quarantined in a hospital in Pyongyang to hide the extent of the casualties suffered in the battle. ''PKM 357'' was later raised and towed to Pyeongtaek Naval Base, where she is now a museum ship. For display at the ''War Memorial of Korea'', another Chamsuri-class patrol boat, PKM 301, was repainted and given faux battle damage to simulate ''PKM 357''. File:PKM 357 at the War Memorial of Korea, 23 March 2011.jpg, ''PKM 357'' replica at the War Memorial of Korea, in March 2011. File:PKM 357 bow section.jpg, ''PKM 357'' replica bow section. Red marks indicate simulated battle damage. File:PKM 357 mid and Bridge section.jpg, ''PKM 357'' replica mid and Bridge section. File:PKM 357 stern section.jpg, ''PKM 357'' replica stern section.

In popular culture

* ''Northern Limit Line'', a 2015 South Korean war film based on the battle

Notes

References

* * Van Dyke, Jon M., Mark J. Valencia and Jenny Miller Garmendia
"The North/South Korea Boundary Dispute in the Yellow (West) Sea"
''Marine Policy'' 27 (2003), 143–158. {{DEFAULTSORT:Yeonpyeong, 2002 Yellow Sea Yeongpyeong Yeongpyeong Yeongpyeong Anti-North Korean sentiment in South Korea Anti-South Korean sentiment in North Korea 2002 in North Korea 2002 in South Korea June 2002 in Asia June 2002 in South Korea Battles in 2002 Korean conflict