South Korea sends military vessels to repel Chinese boats

SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — South Korean military vessels started an operation Friday to repel Chinese fishing boats illegally harvesting prized blue crabs from an area near Seoul's disputed sea boundary with North Korea.

The operation came days after South Korean fishermen towed away two Chinese fishing boats catching crabs south of the sea boundary with North Korea and handed them over to local South Korean authorities.

The waters off the Korean Peninsula's western coast have also seen violent clashes between the rival Koreas because Pyongyang doesn't recognize the sea boundary unilaterally drawn by the American-led U.N. command at the end of the 1950-53 Korean War.