Exclusive economic zone of North Korea

[1] The exclusive economic zone (EEZ) was declared in 1977 after North Korea had contested the validity of the Northern Limit Lines (NLL) set up after the Korean War as maritime borders.

The EEZ has not been codified in law and North Korea has never specified its coordinates, making it difficult to determine its specific scope.

Here, the EEZ does not cause many problems, even with regards to South Korea, because the sea is not thought to be rich in natural resources.

[4] On 18 January 1952, South Korean President Syngman Rhee declared a "Peace Line" establishing a wide area of maritime sovereignty around the entire Korean Peninsula, including North Korea, on the basis that this was the legal government for all of Korea.

Because the Yellow Sea is fairly narrow, the combined 400-nautical mile EEZs of North Korea and China will overlap.

[11] The China–North Korea border on land has not been formally defined, but from treaties and statements it can be inferred to be the Yalu (Amnok) river.

In the Korean Bay in the Yellow Sea, however, China also prefers the equidistant line method, because that would give it the maximum share of the waters.

[8] Chinese academician Ji Guoxing has argued that the EEZs should take into account the specific conditions of the Korean Bay, such as China's longer coastline and historical fishing activities, and be based on the principles of equity and proportionality.

[14] Some kind of agreement about the maritime border reportedly exists between North Korea and China, but it is unclear if this pertains to the EEZ or the continental shelf boundary.

[15] Which of the islands in the Yellow Sea belong to North and which to South Korea will also affect the boundaries of the EEZs of the three countries there.

[21] Although China did not initially protest the establishment of the North Korean EEZ, it has subsequently accused it of hampering economic development on the mouth of the Yalu River, especially at Bohai Bay.

North Korean fishermen who are deprived of quotas to the EEZ then resort to poaching in the waters of China and Russia.