Four North Korean Residents Defect by Sea via Sokcho, East Sea (Update)

Military "New Troops Secured East of Sokcho"

It has been reported that four unidentified individuals from North Korea defected through the Sokcho area in Gangwon Province on the 24th. This is the first 'maritime defection' via the East Sea in four years since November 2019, when two North Korean sailors defected by boat but were forcibly repatriated.

The squid fishing wooden boat used by North Korean fishermen who were forcibly repatriated in November 2019 during the Moon Jae-in administration.
[Photo provided by the Ministry of Unification]

A government source stated, "We understand that four people from North Korea expressed their intention to defect and entered the Sokcho coastal area." The individuals are known to have crossed by boat, and a military official explained, "We secured the personnel in the eastern waters off Sokcho."

An official from the Ministry of Unification said, "We are confirming the details."

Maritime defections via the East Sea have not occurred since November 2019, when two North Korean fishermen who entered through Samcheok Port were forcibly repatriated. The first maritime defection since that incident was in May, when nine family members defected by fishing boat via the West Sea.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.