NLL

NLL means the Northern Limit Line (북방한계선/北方限界線), a maritime demarcation line in the Yellow Sea between North Korea (DPRK) on the north, and South Korea (ROK) on the south. It is an extension of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in the Yellow Sea.

This line of military control acts as the de facto maritime boundary between North and South Korea. Although North Korea denies NLL, the South Korean navies have protected the NLL with all its military efforts. As North Korea does not recognise the line, its fishing boats work close to or over the limit line, escorted by North Korean naval boats. So South Korean naval ships regularly patrol the area around the NLL.

Key words
NLL, Roh Moo-hyun, Kim Jong-il, Inter-Korean Summit, transcipt, National Archives

Description
NLL runs between the mainland portion of Gyeonggi-do province that had been part of Hwanghae before 1945, and the adjacent offshore islands, including Yeonpyeong Island and Baengnyeong Island. Because of the conditions of the armistice, the mainland portion reverted to North Korean control, while the islands remained a part of South Korea despite their close proximity.

The line extends into the sea from the Military Demarcation Line (MDL), and consists of straight line segments between 12 approximate channel midpoints, extended in an arc to prevent egress between both sides. On its western end the line extends out along the 38th parallel to the median line between Korea and China.

NLL issue and Roh Moo-hyun
Former President Roh Moo-hyun signed an eight-point declaration after a summit meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il in Pyongyang on October 4, 2007.

The agreement on enhancing inter-Korean relations and peace and prosperity proposed many detailed joint-ventures. The two Koreas agreed to create a special peace zone around Haeju in North Korea and nearby areas as well as a joint fishing area, a special economic zone, access to the Haeju waterway by commercial ships and joint development of the estuary of the Han River.

Realistic assessment
The deal for such economic cooperation boosted expectations by local industries of access to North Korean resources. It would also have resolved skirmishes in the disputed waters of the Northern Limit Line (NLL). South Korea’s proposal to create a special economic zone in Haeju and the nearby western coast crossing the NLL was that radical. It also underscored President Roh’s single-minded leadership style.

But the project was too ambitious for the Roh administration to handle with just a few months left in its tenure. Roh may have been too self-assured that his promises would be honored by his successor. One official who participated in concocting the proposals explained that Roh was a lawyer and genuinely believed that the NLL, which has no legal binding force, should not serve as a stumbling block to progress even as his aides suggested otherwise.

Military confrontation
But the disputed maritime demarcation line proved to be too big an obstacle to push ahead with the projects. A defense ministerial meeting held in November to discuss a military pact to create joint fishing waters ended in failure. The South Korean defense minister proposed that joint fishing waters be created of equal sizes in the South and North starting from the NLL.

But the North wanted the southern waters, exposing its ambition to exploit the southern territory. The failed talks also dashed hopes for a special economic zone on the western coast in the North. The project was forgotten after the inauguration of the hard-line conservative government led by President Lee Myung-bak.

North Korea since has committed military provocations in the West Sea, sinking a South Korean naval ship and shelling an inhabited island. The South Korean military reinforced its arms on the western frontline, setting up a defense headquarters with an additional 1,100 troops with a plan to turn the entire area into a fortress by 2015 at a cost of 390 billion won (U$333 million). North Korea, in response, stationed 3,000 men as well as 60 to 70 amphibious craft along the west coast. The Yellow Sea, which could have been a symbolic venue for peace, was made a conflict zone.

NLL Script at issue
In the midst of the presidential election in December 2012, the NLL issue appeared out of the political debate into the legal dispute.

The legal dispute began when several ruling Saenuri Party lawmakers first raised allegations that Roh, a liberal, told the North’s leader that Seoul would not insist on the Yellow Sea border, called the Northern Limit Line (NLL), which Pyongyang refuses to recognize as a legitimate maritime border. The main opposition Democratic United Party (DUP) refuted the claims, sayings no such remarks were made. The liberal party then lodged accusations against ruling party Saenuri lawmakers for spreading lies with the aim of trying to affect the presidential election.

The DUP argued that all the documents related to the summit are restricted records that could only be checked if two-thirds of the Assembly agreed and a high court judge ordered them to be examined as part of trial proceedings.

Accordingly, South Korean prosecutors looked into the controversial classified transcripts of the 2007 inter-Korean summit meeting, as part of the investigation into allegations that late President Roh made remarks undermining the legitimacy of the western sea border.

After concluding that the transcripts are public records, the Prosecutors’ Office reviewed an abstract version of the documents on the alleged conversation between Roh and late North Korean leader Kim Jong-il during their meeting in Pyongyang six years ago. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) submitted the document in December 2012.

The investigation failed to produce any trustworthy fact. Then the issue was escalated to the question, "Does the NLL transcript still exist at the National Archives?", which turned out to be non-existence of the script.

Controversies continued
Following an accusation that ex-President Roh disavowed the western maritime border during his meeting with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il, lawmakers voted to give themselves unprecedented access to the National Archives in July 2013 to check the transcript of the summit. After several searches, they concluded that the transcript was not there.

The disappearance fueled political battles between the ruling and opposition parties and contradictory blame claims. The battle calmed down after the two sides made a political compromise to walk away from it. The ruling Saenuri Party asked prosecutors to launch a probe into the missing transcript.

Also President Park Geun-hye made the comment on August 6 at a cabinet meeting at the Blue House as she urged ministers to reform wrongful practices from the past and dedicate themselves to a new political culture based on proper values. She said, “It was an unprecedented event that an important historical record disappeared. It undermined the fundamentals of our country and erased history. It was something that should never have happened.”