North Korean Cargo Ship Carrying Coal Sinks in China After Deviating from Reported Route

It has been belatedly revealed that a North Korean vessel carrying 4,600 tons of coal sank in Chinese waters while allegedly traveling from the West Sea to the East Sea.
Voice of America (VOA) reported, citing International Maritime Organization (IMO) marine casualty records, that the North Korean cargo ship "Unson 7" sank after colliding with a Chinese fishing boat on December 14 of last year at 11:43 p.m. The incident occurred approximately 13 nautical miles, or about 24 kilometers, east of Zhoushan, Zhejiang Province, China, where the ship was anchored due to poor weather conditions.
According to IMO records, the Unson 7 signaled warnings with its daytime signal lights toward the approaching Chinese fishing boat. However, the Chinese vessel, which was operating at night with its work lights on, failed to notice the warnings and struck the Unson 7.
The Unson 7 sank completely within 20 to 30 minutes of the collision, but all crew members were rescued by the Chinese fishing boat, resulting in no casualties.
A notable aspect of the incident is that the Unson 7 had reported to the IMO that it was traveling from Nampo on the west coast to Chongjin on the east coast.
The Zhoushan waters where the accident occurred are more than 500 kilometers away from Jeju Island in a straight line, which is far outside the typical route for traveling from the West Sea to the East Sea.
The Panel of Experts for the UN Security Council Committee, which monitored sanctions on North Korea, previously identified this region in reports as an area where North Korean vessels frequently engage in illegal ship-to-ship coal transfers and sanctions evasion activities.
Suspicions have been raised that North Korea, which is under a total ban on the export of minerals including coal due to UN Security Council sanctions, may have been attempting a "ship-to-ship transfer" of coal in Chinese waters.
There is also speculation that the vessel may have attempted to evade international scrutiny by reporting its destination as Chongjin Port, despite its actual destination being China.
Neil Watts, a former member of the UN Security Council Panel of Experts on North Korea, told VOA, "It is not surprising that a North Korean ship reporting its destination as Chongjin was in the Zhoushan waters," adding, "The Ningbo-Zhoushan area is well-known as a location where ship-to-ship transfers of North Korean coal take place."
(Photo: Captured from the UN Panel of Experts report on North Korea, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.