3 years ago
The Republic of Korea (ROK) urged the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) on Saturday to further investigate the fatal shooting of an ROK fisheries official and suggested it could be an unprecedented joint probe by the two sides. The fisheries official was shot dead by DPRK soldiers on Tuesday, the first such killing of an ROK civilian in a decade.
In a surprise move, DPRK leader Kim Jong Un said he was "very sorry" for the "unexpected and disgraceful event," but the ROK announced it would ask for further investigation.
"We have decided to demand the North carry out a further probe and request a joint investigation if necessary," the ROK's presidential office said in a statement, adding that ROK's own investigation will continue because of "discrepancies" in the accounts of the shooting.
The rare conciliatory message from the DPRK leader came as Moon faced intense political fallout over the incident, which coincided with a renewed push by him for engagement with the DPRK. "Chairman Kim Jong Un asked to convey his feeling that he is greatly sorry that an unexpected unsavory incident occurred in our waters which hugely disappointed President Moon Jae-in and compatriots in the South," the adviser, Suh Hoon, told reporters.
The DPRK told the ROK its troops operating near the western sea border fired more than 10 shots against the ROK man intruding into the DPRK's waters as part of "infection control measure," adding that it had burned the floating device that the ROK man was on, not his body, Suh said.
