Seoul to Return Chinese Ship : Decision Follows Rare Talks With Peking

The Seoul government, following rare talks with China, said today that it will return a seized Chinese torpedo ship that entered South Korean territorial waters after a mutiny in which six crewmen died.

Culture and Information Minister Lee Won-hong said the decision to return the Chinese vessel was made in talks between officials of China’s official New China News Agency and the South Korean consulate in Hong Kong.

It was only the second time since South Korea was created after World War II that Seoul and Peking have held direct talks.

“After accepting a formal apology and explanation from the People’s Republic of China . . . the government has decided to settle the incident by delivering the torpedo boat and its entire crew to the Chinese side” on Wednesday or Thursday, Lee said.

The 45-ton Chinese navy torpedo ship drifted into South Korean territorial waters last Friday, one day after two disgruntled seamen shot and killed six crewmen.

The South Korean navy seized the ship and chased away three other Chinese warships searching for the lost vessel in the Yellow Sea.

On Monday, Lee said he was satisfied there had been no deliberate intent by the Chinese to enter South Korean territorial waters.

The Seoul government also said Monday that all 13 surviving crewmen, including the two mutineers, wanted to return to China, but South Korean newspapers said the mutineers did not want to go home.

The first time China and South Korea held direct official talks was in Seoul in 1983 to arrange the return of a Chinese airliner hijacked to South Korea.