North Korea warns of naval tensions during search for slain South Koreans

Seoul – North Korea said it was searching for the body of a South Korean man killed by its troops, but warned that South Korean naval operations in the area threaten to escalate tensions, state media reported Sunday.

North Korean leader Kim Jong Un issued a rare apology on Friday for the fatal shooting of the South Korean fisheries official in North Korean waters.

The South Korean military accused North Korean soldiers of killing the man, dousing his body with fuel and setting him on fire near the maritime border.

Korea’s Central News Agency said Sunday that North Korean authorities were considering ways to hand over the body to the South if they find it.

The report called it a “terrible case that should not have happened” but warned that South Korean naval operations near the scene of the incident had crossed into North Korean waters.

“We urge the south side to immediately stop the intrusion through the military demarcation line into the western sea that may lead to escalating tensions,” the report says.

A spokesman for the South Korean Ministry of National Defense said it had no immediate comment on the North Korean allegations. North Korea was beginning its own search operation to recover the body, KCNA said.

“We also took the most necessary security measures to ensure that in no case would there be more incidents that spoil the relationships of trust and respect between the north and the south, true to the intention of our Supreme Leadership,” the report adds. without giving more details.

South Korea urged North Korea on Saturday to further investigate the fatal shooting and suggested it could be a joint investigation by the two sides.