Text Fwd:[Peace Network] North Korea’s Stronger Repulsion against the PSI…The West Sea is Dangerous

* Image source/description: a blog specialized for the media critic
'The five islands [ in the squares] in the western sea of the Korean peninsula defined in the Chapter 2, article 13(b) in the Korean War Armistice Agreement, July 27, 1953 [ 1. Baekryung-do, 2. Daechung-do, 3. Sochung-do, 4. Yonpyeong-do and 5. Woo-do] .. The map is the 3rd map among the 22 maps of the Korean War Armistice Agreement'


* Original Korean site
* Below is the Unofficial translation and needs the proofreading.

North Korea’s Stronger Repulsion against the PSI…The West Sea is Dangerous
Cheong, Wooksik, Representative of the Peace Network, May 27, 2009

Expected but very dangerous reaction came from the North Korea. The spokesperson of the North Korea military, the Panmunjeom Representative Agency said the North Korea would response with the “ militaristic strike” against the South Korean government’s full participation of the Proliferation Security Initiative. As we can see, The North Korean nuclear test on May 25 -Lee Myung Bak government’s declaration for the PSI full participation on May 26 -The North Korea’s warning of the ‘militaristic strike’ on May 27, the Korean peninsula is continuing the ‘run without break’.

According to the Yonhap News report, the North Korean viewpoints on May 27 are largely three. First, regarding the South Korea’s full participation on the PSI as “the declaration of war against us [North Korea]”, the North Korea warns that it would “stamp any tiny hostile activity including the activities of control, search on our peaceful ships with the disallowable infringement against our [DPRK’s] sovereignty and response with the prompt and strong militaristic strike”.

Second, it said, “it can guarantee neither the legal status of the five islands( Baekryung-do, Daechung-do, Sochung-do, Yonpyeong-do and Woo-do) in the South Korean territorial waters northwest from our [DPRK’s] sea military demarcation line in the western sea of the Korea nor the safe navigation of the US imperial invasion force, puppet regime’s naval ships and the general shops acting around the sea”. It can be said the [North Korea[ clarified its will to make the water area near-by the conflict area while repeatedly not acknowledging the Northern Limited Line(NLL). It can be said that the possibility of the armed conflicts became higher in such extent.

Third, it is the claim that the South Korean’s declaration of the full participation in the PSI lead by the United States was “violent infringe and clear denial of the Korean War Armistice Agreement which foreclose any blockade ”, therefore “Our troop will not be restrained by the Korean War Armistice Agreement anymore “ and “If the Korean War Armistice Agreement lost the restraint power, it is natural that the Korean peninsula would return to the war state from the legal point of view and our revolutionary force would turn to military activities according to it.” That claim problamatize the provision 15* of the Korean War Armistice Agreement that “… shall not engage in blockade of any kind of Korea [South and North].”

While the three warnings and the threats are all worrisome, it is needed to notice the 2nd issue. There not only have been the west water engagement twice in 1999 and 2000, the situation has changed as the South and North Korea military agencies changed the engagement principals to the aggressive. Also the dangers of the expanded wars are highly likely that by the force increment of the shore artillery guns & surface to fleet/surface to surface / fleet to surface missiles; by the strengthened of the flight activities; by the South Korean’s tightening of the military readiness condition; largely transferring the control rights to the site commanders; by the land-sea-air joint response plans upon the happenings of the symptoms of the engagements. It is understood that the fact that the North Korea declared the ‘ prohibition of the ship navigation’ in the west water near-by the Zeungsan County, South Pyeongang province during the both days of 25, 27, upon counting the short range missile launch tests.

Furthermore, this is the full season for catching the swimming crab. The possibility of the break-up of the arms conflict is becoming high as the North Korean fleets cross over the NLL[Northern Limited Line] for the reasons of the protection of its own fishing ships; of the maintenance of its own declaired naval line; and of the illegal Chinese fishing ships and as the South Korea militaristically response during the process. Those worrisome are supported by the message of Koh, Han-Suk, Vice-commander of the 2nd fleet of the Navy that “ Presently, the Chinese fishing ships are illegally working in 133 ships in Yonpyeong island, 174 ships in Daechung island. There co-exists the possibility of the collisions between the petrol ships from the both North and South Korea”

The fact that the both sides of the North and South Korea strengthening the militaristic watch, surveillance, reconnaissance condition is heighten the danger of collision. On February 26, Cheong. Jae-Bu, the vice commander of the air force operational command said that “ The flying numbers of North Korean combat airplanes toward the southern side of the special surveillance area defined by our military have become increased two or three times.”

It is known that the joint force of the United States and the Korea is in full operation for the watch & surveillance system with the low altitude Unmanned Aircraft Vehicles (UAV), U-2 surveillance airplanes. In the sense that many armed conflicts have been brought-up during the watch & surveillance process, such activities by the joint forces of the United States and the North Korea increase the anxieties of the Korean peninsula.

* provision 15* of the Korean War Armistice Agreement
"This Armistice Agreement shall apply t[o] all opposing naval forces, which naval forces shall respect the water contiguous to the Demilitarized Zone and to the land area of Korea under the military control of the opposing side, and shall not engage in blockade of any kind of Korea."

(Source: http://news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/korea/kwarmagr072753.html
TEXT OF THE KOREAN WAR ARMISTICE AGREEMENT
July 27, 1953)

* Related Korean article
http://www.tongilnews.com/news/articleView.html?idxno=84565
<기고> 다시 보는 정전협정
이명박 정부의 PSI 전면 참여와 북의 대응을 바라보며
May 29, 2009, Friday
[Opinion] Korean War Armistice Agreement Revisited:
Looking at the Lee Myung Bak government’s Full participation in the PSI and North Korea’s Response
By Yoo, Young-Ho, May 29, 2009, Friday