South Korea asks North Korea for help with finding missing seaman near border
South Korea has requested North Korea's assistance in locating a navy seaman who went missing near their shared maritime border. The request was sent via public media due to the lack of active communication channels between the two nations.
Why it matters
This incident highlights the ongoing diplomatic freeze and high tensions between the two Koreas, complicating even basic humanitarian cooperation.
South Korea’s unification ministry is seeking North Korea’s help to find a missing seaman near the two countries’ border on the east coast, it said on Sunday (July 12, 2026).
The request was sent via a text message to reporters because there is no active communication line with the North, according to the ministry in charge of handling inter-Korean affairs. It said it was directed to Pyongyang.
“On July 12, a navy seaman went missing while on a coast guard duty on the East Sea, and it seems there is a possibility of being drifted north across the Northern Limit Line,” the message said, referring to the coastal border with North Korea.
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