Posted on 05/17/2010 9:03:21 PM PDT by TigerLikesRooster
Cheonan Investigators Find Pieces of Torpedo Propeller
Investigators have apparently discovered pieces of a propeller from a torpedo, which could provide valuable clues to exactly what caused the Navy corvette Cheonan to sink on March 26.
"In a search using fishing trawlers, we recently discovered pieces of debris that are believed to have come from the propeller of the torpedo that attacked the Cheonan," a high-ranking government source said Monday. "Analysis of the debris shows it may have originated from China or a former Eastern-bloc country like the former Soviet Union."
If conclusive evidence is found for North Korea's role in the attack, the government plans to implement sanctions against the North immediately after announcing the results of the investigation on Thursday. Officials gathered at the presidential office on Monday to discuss specific sanctions, including joint anti-submarine exercises by South Korean and U.S. forces, the resumption of psychological warfare against North Korea, blocking North Korean ships from waters off the coast of Jeju Island and a halt to all inter-Korean trade except the Kaesong Industrial Complex.
A Chinese-made Yu-3 type torpedo like the one in this photo is presumed to have hit the Navy corvette Cheonan. A Chinese-made Yu-3 type torpedo like the one in this photo is presumed to have hit the Navy corvette Cheonan. |
Investigators already concluded that traces of explosives and aluminum debris found in the funnel and split section of the Cheonan are highly likely the same type used by former Eastern-bloc countries as well as North Korea in manufacturing torpedoes, and that the North is the only likely culprit given circumstantial evidence such as the movements of submarines around the time of the sinking.
The investigators will announce the results on Thursday afternoon and show the media the split section of the corvette, which is currently in storage at a naval base in Pyeongtaek.
P!
could be a third party trying to create tension between north and south korea
A torpedo isn’t like a mine.
A torpedo has to be purposely aimed and fired.
Clearly an act of war.
I am shocked. Shocked.
Looks to be an interesting weekend coming up.
Bump
Duh! As you know the norks do nothing without chicom permission. Such a kabuki dance! Funny if it weren’t so serious.
If the media publish any new photos of the damaged sections, please post them (or at least the URLs) here on FR -- and ping me. Thanks!!
Batten down the hatches over there.
Stay safe.
Why would N. Korea have done this? What did they have to gain by sinking a S. Korean ship?
It was (apparantly) Korean-style payback for an ROK naval victory over the DPRK, some time back. The lead naval officer in Pyongyang gained a star back as a result of this tit-for-tat. This would have been on direct orders from Kim Jong il.
Thanks for that explanation. It still doesn’t quite make sense to me. An act of war is pretty steep payback. Did they not worry that it might spiral out of control? [It’s a rhetorical question this time; please don’t feel you have to speculate.]
Total raving lunatics.
Putting them down would be a pleasure.
Americans need to brace themselves as the level of severity and danger will surely ratchet up.
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