In the article, it is reported that Chinese personnel have been identified for the first time at a Chinese maritime structure installed in the provisional waters of the West Sea between Korea and China, prompting calls for the South Korean government to respond proportionally. Lee Byung-jin, a member of the National Assembly’s Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, Oceans, and Fisheries Committee from the Democratic Party, released this information ahead of a National Assembly inspection of the Korea Coast Guard.
The photos released by Representative Lee show five individuals identified on the ‘Sunlan No. 2’ structure, which was established last year. The people are located in various parts of the structure, with one person seen wearing a diving suit and handling an oxygen tank at the bottom.
Lee argues that it is unusual for marine farms to use diving suits and oxygen tanks and that such operations are unlikely to involve only a small number of personnel, raising suspicions that it may not just be a typical aquaculture operation. As someone with a doctoral degree in law from Peking University, Lee suggests that these illegal structures in the West Sea may not be simple aquafarms but could be part of a broader strategy to make the West Sea more akin to an inland sea, similar to activities in the South China Sea, and may have potential military uses.
Furthermore, Lee reveals that he previously proposed funding for a proportional response to these illegal Chinese structures in the West Sea during the first and second supplementary budgets, with 1 billion won allocated for research and 60.5 billion won earmarked for establishing corresponding structures. Although approved by the relevant committee, these proposals were cut during the budget committee’s review.
Lee emphasizes the possibility that people may reside on the ‘Sunlan No. 2’ and warns that if South Korea does not actively counter these developments, China will never withdraw, thus missing the critical opportunity to protect maritime sovereignty.