# ROK Warship Reported Sunk



## tomahawk6 (26 Mar 2010)

Pyongyang figured the time was ripe to ramp up tensions. As these things go most times there is no retaliation. But if there has been a heavy loss of life the South will be forced to take action.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/northkorea/7528140/South-Korean-navy-ship-with-104-onboard-sunk.html

South Korea's military said a ship from its navy was sinking in the Yellow Sea but could not immediately confirm if it had fired at an unidentified vessel. 

The Seoul government convened an emergency security meeting after the sinking of its ship off the Seoul-controlled island of Baengnyeong. 

The 1,500-ton vessel sank between 9:00 p.m. (1200 GMT) and 10:00 p.m. near the island but the cause of the incident was unknown, the Navy said. A rescue operation was underway. 

MBC television said about half the crew had so far been saved. 

Yonhap news agency quoted officials as saying there was an explosion in the rear of the ship but the cause was unknown. 

The disputed border in the Yellow Sea was the scene of deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002. 

Earlier on Friday, North Korea's military accused the United States and South Korea of trying to topple the Pyongyang regime and said it was ready to launch nuclear attacks to frustrate any provocations. 

The military General Staff cited a South Korean newspaper report as evidence of "desperate moves of the US imperialists and the South Korean puppet warmongers" for regime change. 

"Those who seek to bring down the system in the DPRK (North Korea)... will fall victim to the unprecedented nuclear strikes of the invincible army," a General Staff spokesman told the official Korean Central News Agency.


----------



## karl28 (26 Mar 2010)

I sure hope that the South Korean's and their US allies can save at least some of the crew from the sunken vessel very sad day for there family members .


----------



## tomahawk6 (26 Mar 2010)

The ROK MND has reported that 58 of the crew have been recued. This is crucial to determine if the ship was attacked or experienced some type of accident.


----------



## Colin Parkinson (26 Mar 2010)

I suspect they have an ROV on it's way to inspect the damage, It should be fairly easy to determine if the cause was internal or external.


----------



## karl28 (26 Mar 2010)

tomahawk6      thanks for the update  good to here at least 58 of the crew where saved .  Do you know if the rest of the crew was lost  or are they still getting survivors out of the water .    Should be interesting to see what happens next .


----------



## CougarKing (26 Mar 2010)

More details:

CNN blog link



> *Report: South Korean navy ship sinking near North Korea*
> 
> [Updated at 12:11 a.m.] South Korea's president has told his military to focus on rescuing sailors from one of their navy ships sinking in the Yellow Sea near North Korea, aids told the Yonhap News Agency.
> Yonhap reported 58 sailors had already been rescued. Navy vessels and helicopters were rescuing crew members, some of whom reportedly jumped into the sea after the blast, an official told South Korea's Korean Broadcasting System. *The ship, the Cheonan*, was patrolling southwest of the island around 9:45 p.m. when the explosion took place, a military official told KBS.
> ...



Below is a picture of one of the_ Pohang _class patrol combat corvettes from globalsecurity.org, the class to which the two warships mentioned above belong:


----------



## Retired AF Guy (26 Mar 2010)

Report from  MSNBC  which reports that:



> A senior U.S. national security official told NBC that South Koreans had quietly issued a statement saying it was unlikely North Korea was involved in the sinking of their naval vessel.


 and



> Yonhap [S. Korean news agency] reported that a South Korean ship fired shots toward an unidentified target in the direction of North Korea, raising fears of an exchange of gunfire. The military official confirmed that South Korean troops fired shots but said the object detected by radar may have been a flock of birds.



Appears that there is some confusion as to what exactly happened, but it seems that everything is being downplayed for the time being until the exact cause of the sinking can be determined. However, it does appear that there have been casualties, some fatal.


----------



## tomahawk6 (27 Mar 2010)

The ROK plans to raise the ship. The skipper was among those rescued so he might be able to shed some light on what happened.


----------



## AJFitzpatrick (27 Mar 2010)

Is there a possibility that it might be a unswept Korean War vintage mine ? 

or is that way beyond a conceivable effective lifespan of a mine?


Edit for coherence


----------



## old medic (27 Mar 2010)

Hope fades for South Korean marines after ship sinks
CTV.ca News Staff
http://www.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20100327/ship_sinking_100327/20100327?hub=TopStoriesV2


> The search for missing marines continued in the waters near the disputed border between North and South Korea Saturday amid fading hope of finding survivors after an explosion caused a naval ship to sink.
> 
> Officials said military divers who entered the water Saturday were thwarted by fierce waves and high winds. Divers twice attempted to get to the wreckage. They were unsuccessful both times, Rear Adm. Lee Kisik of the Joint Chiefs of Staff told lawmakers.
> 
> ...


With files from The Associated Press









> There has been speculation that the ship hit a landmine



But not very good speculation...  About as good as speculating it was t-boned by Hyundai 
that ran a red light.


----------



## old medic (27 Mar 2010)

Survivor suggests outside attack on ship 
By Song Sang-ho (sshluck@heraldm.com) Korean Herald
http://www.koreaherald.co.kr/NEWKHSITE/data/html_dir/2010/03/27/201003270064.asp



> A survivor from the sunken naval patrol ship Cheonan on Saturday raised the possibility of the 1,200-ton vessel sinking due to an attack from an outside force.
> 
> “There is no possibility whatsoever that the ship sank due to an internal explosion or a collision with a reef. I guarantee that,” a navy lieutenant was quoted as saying by participants in a briefing session organized by the Navy’s Second Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province -- the home port of the ill-fated ship.
> 
> ...


----------



## Eye In The Sky (27 Mar 2010)

RIP to all those who lost their lives, regardless of the cause.


----------



## jollyjacktar (28 Mar 2010)

Eye In The Sky said:
			
		

> RIP to all those who lost their lives, regardless of the cause.



Well said, and further as a fellow Sailor my heart especially goes out to the lost.  A shitty way to go.


----------



## CougarKing (29 Mar 2010)

Apparently they found the stern of the sunken South Korean warship:

Agence-France Presse link



> BAENGNYEONG ISLAND, South Korea (AFP) - *Searchers have found the stern section of a South Korean warship that was torn apart by a mystery blast near the North Korean border and divers will try to reach it later Monday, the military said.*
> A successful dive would provide clues about the fate of 46 missing crewmen and about the cause of the blast which sent the 1,200-tonne corvette to the bottom of the Yellow Sea Friday night.
> 
> 
> ...


----------



## Colin Parkinson (29 Mar 2010)

The comments about the possibility of rescuing crew from the sunken section (if accurately reported) were likely to give the impression to the families that everything is being done to find your kin to help ease the pain of loss. A watertight compartment of a ship would not likely be able to withstand the pressure at even 30m deep, they are just not designed for that.


----------



## Retired AF Guy (29 Mar 2010)

Colin P said:
			
		

> The comments about the possibility of rescuing crew from the sunken section (if accurately reported) were likely to give the impression to the families that everything is being done to find your kin to help ease the pain of loss. A watertight compartment of a ship would not likely be able to withstand the pressure at even 30m deep, they are just not designed for that.



Even if it could withstand the pressure, I'm sure they would have ran out of oxygen by now. Not a nice way to go.


----------



## tomahawk6 (29 Mar 2010)

If the initial blast didnt kill them then the flooding and or frigid water would have. The ROKNAV seems to be leaning toward a mine of unknown origin,although the ROK claims they have no mines in the area so that would leave a North Korean mine that either broke loose and drifted south or it was intentional. Either way the the ROKNAV will have to adjust their patroling with the the risk of encountering North Korean mines.


----------



## daftandbarmy (30 Mar 2010)

AJFitzpatrick said:
			
		

> Is there a possibility that it might be a unswept Korean War vintage mine ?
> 
> or is that way beyond a conceivable effective lifespan of a mine?
> 
> ...



Or a brand new North Korean mine... if so, here we go again

Warship may have hit mine 

SEOUL - A NAVAL mine dispatched from North Korea may have struck the South Korean warship that exploded and sank near the Koreas' disputed sea border, the defence minister said as he laid out several scenarios for the maritime disaster.

Defence Minister Kim Tae Young told lawmakers on Monday there was no sign of a direct attack from rival North Korea, but military authorities have not ruled out North Korean involvement in the sinking of the Cheonan late on Friday night.

An explosion ripped the 1,200-ton ship apart during a routine patrol mission near Baengnyeong Island west of the peninsula. Fifty-eight crew members, including the captain, were plucked to safety; 46 remain missing. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the exact cause would remain unclear until the ship is salvaged after the rescue operation is over. 

On Monday, mothers beat their chests with grief as divers went down to search for survivors, returning to report hearing no sounds inside the underwater wreckage. Mr Kim, grilled by lawmakers on what happened on Friday night, said the ship may have struck a mine left over from the war or deliberately dispatched from the North.
Many of the 3,000 Soviet-made naval mines North Korea planted in the waters off both coasts during the war were removed, but not all. Mr Kim noted a North Korean mine was discovered as recently as 1984. - AP

http://www.straitstimes.com/BreakingNews/Asia/Story/STIStory_508363.html


----------



## Gramps (30 Mar 2010)

Is there anyone out there that could maybe explain how some of  these mines work? Can they be remotely controlled/detonated? I am sure there is more to it than the old Second World War type mines we have all seen on the TV. I have no knowledge on the subject and am curious to know.


----------



## tomahawk6 (30 Mar 2010)

Maybe one of our Naval experts might opine,but just like land mines there are a number of methods of detonation - remotely,accoustic and magnetic come to mind. The torpedo theory is still a possibility,but without knowing the attitude of the ship its hard to say for sure. A surviving crewman thought the explosion occured near the screw which could mean either a mine or torpedo. A stern shot from a sub at night is feasible but I wouldnt think its the optimum engagement for a sub. The waters near this island are shallow with tricky currents which would not be ideal for a sub engagement.


----------



## Colin Parkinson (30 Mar 2010)

A South Korean military diver searching for survivors from a navy ship that sank off North Korea has died.

The diver lost consciousness as he searched wreckage of the Cheonan warship which sank after an explosion on Friday, the military said. 

Rescuers have been working to get inside the ship, split in two by the blast. Forty-six sailors are missing. 

The cause of the explosion is not yet clear, but a senior official has said it could have been a North Korean mine. 

South Korean President Lee Myung-bak visited the scene of the wreck on Tuesday, flying in by helicopter to Baengnyeong island near the disputed inter-Korean border. 

He also ordered the military onto alert, saying: "Since the sinking took place at the front line, the military should thoroughly prepare for any move by North Korea." 

Dangerous waters

Fifty-eight crew members were rescued when the Cheonan went down late on Friday. 

Officials say they believe that some of the 46 sailors still missing could have survived in water-tight cabins in the stern of the ship. 

More than a dozen South Korean ships are involved in the rescue effort, plus a US vessel. 

  
The diver who died was one of dozens brought in to try to gain access to the wreckage. The cause of death is not known. 

Another diver was also been taken to hospital, military officials said. 

A navy spokesman said the divers were working in "a very vicious environment" with swift currents and murky visibility. 

"Our goal is to get into the ship and find any survivors but at the moment it is extremely hard to do so," the navy spokesman said. 

On Monday, teams used a hose to inject oxygen into the stern via a crack, but divers who knocked on the hull received no response. 

The cause of the blast that sank the ship remains unclear. 

Defence Minister Kim Tae-young has said it could have been caused by a mine laid by the North during the 1950-53 Korean War. 

He said it could also have been a mine that the communist state intentionally sent floating towards the South Korean vessel. 

But an internal malfunction has not been ruled out and military officials said establishing the cause of the blast might have to wait until the ship is salvaged. 

Pyongyang has made no official comment on the incident. 

It does not accept the maritime border, known as the Northern Limit Line, which was drawn unilaterally by the US-led United Nations Command at the end of the Korean War. 

The area has been the scene of deadly clashes between the navies of the two Koreas in the past.


----------



## Retired AF Guy (30 Mar 2010)

Gramps said:
			
		

> Is there anyone out there that could maybe explain how some of  these mines work? Can they be remotely controlled/detonated? I am sure there is more to it than the old Second World War type mines we have all seen on the TV. I have no knowledge on the subject and am curious to know.



Ask and you shall receive! From that fountain of knowledge - Wikipedia:

 Naval Mines 

An excerpt from the NORTH KOREA COUNTRY HANDBOOK MARINE CORPS INTELLIGENCE ACTIVITY (May 1997 edition): 

_" The DPRK has a credible mine warfare capability. There are numerous small surface ships that are capable of delivering mines within both the navy and civilian sectors. Mines will be used to defend against amphibious assaults, defend strategic ports, and provide seaward flank protection for land forces. Defensive mine fields will be monitored by coastal observation teams and radar, and they will be supported by well emplaced artillery and missile batteries. This will make close approach and mine clearing operations extremely hazardous. *DPRK has a large inventory of older technology mines, significant historical experience with their effectiveness, and, most importantly, the willingness to use them."*_ (My emphasis]

The complete document can be found here: http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/library/report/1997/nkor.pdf

Lot of speculation in today's media about what caused the explosion including NK suicide naval teams:  

 N.Korea 'Runs Naval Suicide Squads'

The possibility of a N. Korean mine may have drifted into S. Korean waters (whether deliberately or accidently is unknown) including mines from the Korean War era minesis also being considered. Apparently about 3,000 Soviet mines were deployed during the '50-53 war. However, that any of them would still afloat after these many yearsseems a little far fetched if you ask me.

 South Korea Alerts Military Over Sunken Naval Vessel


----------



## aesop081 (30 Mar 2010)

tomahawk6 said:
			
		

> A stern shot from a sub at night is feasible but I wouldnt think its the optimum engagement for a sub.



Doesnt have to be optimum to score a kill.




> ideal for a sub engagement.



"Ideal is the enemy of good enough"

Diesel-electric submarines are usualy designed and built for shallow water / coastal operations. Add in wire-guided weapons and wake-homing technology........or even submarine-layed mines......


----------



## blacktriangle (30 Mar 2010)

CDN Aviator,

Doesn't the North operates copies of the Romeo class SSK that can lay mines? Are those things pretty quiet as far as SSKs go? I couldn't see the North maintaining them that well, so I thought the power plant noises might be easier to pick up on...would that even matter if the SK ships were not looking for a sub/expecting an attack?


----------



## aesop081 (30 Mar 2010)

popnfresh said:
			
		

> CDN Aviator,
> 
> Doesn't the North operates copies of the Romeo class SSK that can lay mines? Are those things pretty quiet as far as SSKs go? I couldn't see the North maintaining them that well, so I thought the power plant noises might be easier to pick up on...would that even matter if the SK ships were not looking for a sub/expecting an attack?



Forgive me but on those points *i * will let you draw your own conclusions, for obvious reasons.


----------



## Colin Parkinson (31 Mar 2010)

To give an example on the longevity of mines

The international mine-clearance operation Open Spirit turned up 90 explosive devices in the Baltic Sea, 60 of which have been deactivated, reports news agency LETA LETA Law Enforcement Thermographers Association
LETA Lancaster Employment and Training Agency (Pennsylvania)
LETA Laboratoire Esthetique Theorique et Applique . The most mines--52--were found in the vicinity of Naissaare Island. The rarest finds were a naval mine of Russian origin, 132 years old, and a German mine with a wooden shell from the Second World War. "The most important aspect of the operation is that we can be certain of the safety of the surveyed shipping routes and anchoring areas," said the chief of the operation and of the Estonian Navy Igor Schvede. The mine-clearance vessels and divers surveyed 67 square miles, or 120 square kilometers. The Baltic sea, particularly the Gulf of Finland in northern Europe is considered one of the most mine-riddled maritime areas in the world. During the world wars, more than 150,000 naval mines are estimated to have been thrown into the Baltic, 80,000 into the Gulf of Finland.


----------



## daftandbarmy (31 Mar 2010)

Gramps said:
			
		

> Is there anyone out there that could maybe explain how some of  these mines work? Can they be remotely controlled/detonated? I am sure there is more to it than the old Second World War type mines we have all seen on the TV. I have no knowledge on the subject and am curious to know.



Mines don't have to be boring anymore, like those big, static, knobbly things placed in big bunches dangling at the end of large chains. You know, like those big minefields that Richard Baseheart used to get the 'Seaview' stuck in from time to time:


Torpedo mine 
The torpedo mine is a self-propelled variety, able to lie in wait for a target and then pursue it e.g. the CAPTOR mine. Other designs such as the Mk 67 Submarine Launched Mobile Mine[28] (which is based on a Mark 37 torpedo) are capable of swimming as far as 10 miles through or into a channel, harbor, shallow water area and other zones which would normally be inaccessible to craft laying the device. After reaching the target area they sink to the sea bed and act like conventionally laid influence mines. Generally, torpedo mines incorporate computerised acoustic and magnetic fuzes.

The U.S. Mark 24 "mine", code-named FIDO, was actually an ASW homing torpedo. The mine designation was disinformation to conceal its function.


http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Naval_mine


----------



## CougarKing (14 Apr 2010)

Update: South Korea starts to salvage/refloat the sunken warship.

Associated Press link



> SEOUL, South Korea – *South Korea began lifting its sunken warship Thursday in waters near the tense border with North Korea, about three weeks after the ship went down following a mysterious explosion on board. Dozens of sailors missing since the sinking are believed trapped inside.*
> Efforts to locate the 44 missing crew and salvage the wreckage of the 1,200-ton Cheonan has been impeded by high winds, a swift current and other bad weather conditions.
> 
> On Thursday, a huge naval recovery-crane started hoisting the stern, where most of the missing sailors are believed trapped, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul.
> ...


----------



## midget-boyd91 (14 Apr 2010)

For the benefit of those civvie/non naval types on here (Me).. What is involved in salvaging a naval ship that has been sunk. I know it means recovering it.... but how and what can it show in terms of the cause of the ships demise?

Oddball


----------



## tomahawk6 (15 Apr 2010)

I would expect the hull would show evidence of an external explosion either by a mine or torpedo or if it was internal. If its the latter then the North Koreans are off the hook. If there is evidence of an external explosion then the ROK will be looking for payback.


----------



## GAP (15 Apr 2010)

Dead sailors recovered as S. Korea hoists sunken warship
Article Link
 Hyung-Jin Kim The Associated Press

SEOUL-South Korea lifted part of a warship from the sea Thursday, nearly three weeks after it mysteriously exploded and sank with dozens of sailors trapped inside. Salvage workers found dead bodies of 32 crew members in the retrieved vessel.

Fifty-eight crew members were rescued shortly after the 1,200-tonne Cheonan split into two pieces after exploding March 26 during a routine patrol near the tense border with North Korea. So far, 34 bodies have been recovered, while 12 sailors remain unaccounted for.

Recovering the wrecked ship could help determine the cause of the blast. There has been some suspicion but no confirmation of North Korean involvement in the sinking. The disputed western sea border has in the past been the scene of three bloody inter-Korean naval battles.

On Thursday, a huge naval crane hoisted the stern portion of the ship — where most of the missing sailors are believed trapped — a day after divers succeeded in tying the wreckage with chains.

Rescuers and salvage workers later boarded the stern and found 32 bodies identified as Cheonan crew, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Seoul. Divers had previously retrieved two bodies during an underwater hunt.
More on link


----------



## CougarKing (15 Apr 2010)

A photo of the salvaged South Korean corvette _Cheonan_, courtesy of the _Associated Press_:

(The picture shows just the aft/stern half of the ship.)


----------



## CougarKing (16 Apr 2010)

Now South Korean investigators say an external explosion likely sank the ship.

Associated Press link




> SEOUL, South Korea –* An external explosion most likely sank a South Korean navy ship that split apart three weeks ago*, an investigator said Friday, amid concerns about possible North Korea involvement in the disaster.
> 
> The 1,200-ton Cheonan split into two pieces after exploding March 26 during a routine patrol near the tense maritime border with North Korea. Fifty-eight crew members were rescued, but 46 were missing for weeks.
> 
> ...


----------



## tomahawk6 (22 Apr 2010)

The ROK's have decided a NORK sub did the dead. Payback is necessary or this will happen again. If we hear about a NORK sub going missing then we will know. ;D

http://news.yahoo.com/s/afp/nkoreaskoreamilitarynaval

SEOUL (AFP) – South Korea's military believes that a North Korean submarine launched a torpedo attack to sink a South Korean warship last month near their disputed sea border, the Yonhap news agency said on Thursday.

The assessment was reported to the office of President Lee Myung-Bak and the defence ministry immediately after the ship sank last month, an unnamed senior military source told Yonhap.

"It's our military intelligence's assessment that North Korean submarines attacked the ship with a heavy torpedo," the source said, adding that the subs were armed with torpedoes with 200-kilogram (440-pound) warheads.

"Since February last year, North Korea has strengthened training that showed the possibility of it launching a guerilla warfare-style provocation, rather than a skirmish."

The South's military intelligence command had also alerted the navy ahead of the March 26 sinking of the Cheonan that North Korea was preparing an attack, Yonhap said.

The South's defence ministry refused to comment on the report.

Seoul has so far refrained from directly accusing Pyongyang and said only that an "external explosion" was the most likely cause of the disaster which cost the lives of 46 sailors.

Pyongyang has denied it was responsible.

South Korean Defence Minister Kim Tae-Young has already raised the possibility that a mine or torpedo may have sunk the ship, following deadly naval clashes in 1999 and 2002 and a November firefight.

The November incident left a North Korean patrol boat in flames and local media reports said one North Korean sailor was killed and three wounded.

The North has vowed "merciless" military action to protect what it sees as its Yellow Sea border.

South Korea's Chosun Ilbo newspaper meanwhile quoted defectors as saying that North Korea had formed suicide attack squads known as "human torpedoes" in its navy.

It said the North's navy operates a brigade of suicide attack squads, which have many mini-submarines capable of carrying torpedoes or floating mines.


----------



## karl28 (22 Apr 2010)

tomahawk6 


         Thank you for the update was wondering what had happened because you really haven't heard anything  till now . What do you think will happen in response to this ?


----------



## tomahawk6 (22 Apr 2010)

I think the ROK will retaliate at some point. Taking out a North Korean sub would be perfect. Doing something on land would be too dangerous which is why the North attacked a naval vessel and I am sure they thought they would be in the clear.


----------



## GAP (22 Apr 2010)

Maybe it really wasn't N.K., although I highly doubt that, but it could also have been Chinese....they transit through there to go north....


----------



## Old Sweat (23 Apr 2010)

The Chinese did not have any reason to sink the ship.


----------



## tomahawk6 (23 Apr 2010)

Another update.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/worldnews/asia/southkorea/7619087/South-Korean-ship-sunk-by-crack-squad-of-human-torpedoes.html




> The attack on the 1,220-ton Cheonan, which sank on March 26 with the loss of 46 of its 104 crew, was carried out in retaliation for a skirmish between warships of the two nations' navies in November of last year, South Korea claims.
> 
> The South Korean government has refused to comment officially on the reports but Defence Minister Kim Tae Young told a parliamentary session that the military believed that the sinking was a deliberate act by North Korea.
> 
> ...


----------



## Old Sweat (23 Apr 2010)

The following story, which appeared in today's edition of the National Post as well as yesterday's online version, is reproduced under the fair comments provisions of the Copyright Act.

Human torpedoes’ sank South Korea’s ship: paper
Debate still rages over exact cause of incident

Peter Goodspeed, National Post  
Published: Thursday, April 22, 2010 


A newspaper in South Korea has accused the North of using such a [suicide sub] device to sink a South Korean ship. 
Suicide squads of North Korean "human torpedoes" operating a fleet of semi-submersible midget submarines may have been responsible for sinking the South Korean naval corvette Cheonan last month, according to a conservative Seoul newspaper.

However, the government-funded Yonhap news agency has issued a report saying South Korean military intelligence believes North Korean submarines hit the Cheonan with a heavy torpedo on March 26 in a deliberate and unprovoked attack.

Quoting an unnamed defence ministry source, the news agency said, "Military intelligence made the report to the Blue House [South Korea's presidential palace] and defence ministry immediately after the sinking of the Cheonan that it is clearly the work of North Korea's military.

"North Korean submarines are all armed with heavy torpedoes with 200 kilogram warheads. It is the military intelligence's assessment that the North attacked with a heavy torpedo."

Forty-six of the Cheonan's 104 crew are dead or missing after the attack cut the 1,200-tonne ship in two.

The stern section has been raised and divers are still trying to retrieve the bow as U.S. and South Korean investigators search for definitive clues to the cause of the sinking. South Korea has not directly blamed North Korea, but a preliminary investigation concluded the blast did not come from on board the vessel.

It's possible the Cheonan struck an untethered North or South Korean mine, but even as military divers recovered the body of a missing sailor yesterday, speculation is raging over the exact cause of the tragedy.

Evidence of a direct and deliberate attack by North Korea could plunge the Koreas into war.

As calls for some form of retaliation grow, the conservative newspaper Choson Ilbo has published reports the naval attack was carried out by a specially trained suicide squad of "human torpedoes" acting on direct orders from dictator Kim Jong-il.

South Korea's biggest-selling daily newspaper is urging the government not to rule out military action against North Korea.

It quoted defence department sources saying they believe North Korea attacked the Cheonan near a disputed sea border in retaliation for a naval skirmish in the same area in November. Several North Korean sailors were killed and a patrol boat was damaged in the confrontation.

Chosun Ilbo said military intelligence officials warned the South Korean government in February North Korea might be planning an attack with "suicide submarines."

The newspaper quoted former North Korean defectors saying contacts in Pyongyang told them the attack involved a unit of 13 specially trained commandos in semi-submersible midget submarines.

North Korea has only indirectly denied involvement in the sinking, issuing a statement that reads, "Failing to probe the cause of the sinking of the ship, the puppet military warmongers, right-wing conservative politicians and other traitors in South Korea are now foolishly seeking to link the sinking with the North at any cost."

Political activists belonging to the Family Assembly Abducted to North Korea (sic), a group made up of former North Korean defectors and people whose relatives were abducted by North Korea, released the transcript of a phone conversation between a military defector and "an unnamed senior North Korean army officer" in which the North Korean says Mr. Kim ordered the Cheonan's sinking.

"After the North lost the sea skirmish in November last year, Kim Jong-il gave an order to take revenge," the transcript says.

On Monday, Lee Myung-bak, the South Korean President, tearfully addressd the nation, reciting the names of the 46 dead and missing sailors. He also vowed to deal "resolutely and unwaveringly" with the findings of the investigation into the Cheonan's sinking.

So far, he has been deliberately cautious in assigning blame, since any military reaction could escalate into an all-out war.

"People have forgotten that North Korea, armed with long-range artillery, is located just 40 miles away from us," Mr. Lee told a meeting of business leaders in Seoul on Wednesday.

How the South Korean President deals with the crisis may also impact his party's fortunes in local elections across the country on June 2.

The United States and China have diplomatically avoided assigning blame for the sinking, with Washington offering to help in a prolonged and detailed investigation, while Beijing is urging Seoul to refrain from taking any "improper" steps.

The sinking came at a time of renewed tensions between North and South Korea.

There are reports Pyongyang may be preparing for a third series of nuclear tests and, this week, Seoul arrested two North Korean assassins who were allegedly ordered "to behead" Hwang Jang-yop, a former secretary of North Korea's Workers Party and the highest-ranking defector to South Korea.



Read more: http://www.nationalpost.com/news/story.html?id=2940221#ixzz0lvahTiGr


----------



## CougarKing (24 Apr 2010)

The bow half of that sunken warship has been raised:

AOL news link









> (April 24) --* South Korea has retrieved the bow of a sunken warship that exploded mysteriously last month in disputed waters near North Korea, leaving 46 sailors dead or missing and hiking already-high tension between the two countries.*
> Investigators say the blast was from an external source, not mechanical failure on the boat itself. South Korea hasn't outright accused the North of torpedoing its ship, but unnamed intelligence officials have suggested it in media reports. The North has denied it.
> 
> A unnamed South Korean official told the country's Yonhap news agency today that evidence of damage on the ship's retrieved bow supports the theory of an external blast.
> ...


----------

