The sinking killed 46 South Korean sailors and sharply escalated inter-Korean tensions, prompting sanctions and UN Security Council condemnation.
Key Facts
- Date of sinking
- 26 March 2010
- Personnel aboard
- 104 persons
- Sailors killed
- 46 persons
- Vessel type
- Pohang-class corvette
- Investigation conclusion
- Sunk by North Korean torpedo from midget submarine
- South Korean response
- May 24 measures (sanctions against North Korea)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula provided the backdrop for the incident. A South Korean-led multinational investigation concluded that a North Korean midget submarine fired a torpedo at the Cheonan corvette near Baengnyeong Island in the Yellow Sea, though North Korea denied responsibility and the finding drew international controversy.
On 26 March 2010, the ROKS Cheonan, a South Korean Pohang-class corvette carrying 104 personnel, sank in the Yellow Sea near Baengnyeong Island. The incident killed 46 sailors. A subsequent multinational investigation released findings on 20 May 2010 attributing the sinking to a North Korean torpedo, a conclusion disputed by North Korea, China, and subject to an undisclosed Russian Navy inquiry.
South Korea imposed the May 24 measures, a set of economic and trade sanctions against North Korea. The UN Security Council issued a Presidential Statement condemning the attack but stopped short of naming North Korea as the perpetrator. The sinking significantly deepened hostility between the two Koreas and strained regional diplomatic relations.
Belligerents & Mobilization Analysis
Side A
1 belligerent
Side B
1 belligerent