The 1998 Sokcho submarine incident occurred on 22 June 1998, offshore of the South Korean city of Sokcho.
Part of Korean Conflict | |||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||
Belligerents | |||||||
South Korea | North Korea | ||||||
Strength | |||||||
1 Pohang-class corvette | 1 Yugo-class submarine | ||||||
Casualties and losses | |||||||
None |
1 submarine captured 9 dead (5 executed, 4 by suicide) |
On 22 June, a North Korean Yugo-class submarine became entangled in a fishing driftnet in South Korean waters approximately 18 kilometres (11 mi) east of the port of Sokcho and 33 kilometres (21 mi) south of the inter-Korean border. A South Korean fishing boat observed several submarine crewmen trying to untangle the submarine from the fishing net. The South Korean Navy sent a Pohang-class corvette which towed the submarine (with the crew still inside) to a navy base at the port of Donghae.[1][2] The submarine sank as it was being towed into port; it was unclear if this was as a result of damage or a deliberate scuttling by the crew.[3]
On 23 June, the Korean Central News Agency admitted that a submarine had been lost in a training accident.[4]
On 25 June, the submarine was salvaged from a depth of approximately 30 metres (100 ft) and the bodies of nine crewmen were recovered; five sailors had apparently been killed while four agents had apparently committed suicide.[5] The presence of South Korean drinks suggested that the crew had completed an espionage mission.[6] Log books found in the submarine showed that it had infiltrated South Korean waters on a number of previous occasions.[7]
The bodies of the members of submarine crew were subsequently returned to North Korea in a ceremony that took place in Panmunjom on 3 July 1998.[8]
38°13′41″N 128°43′41″E / 38.228°N 128.728°E