N.KOREAN VESSEL CONTROVERSY

[Anchor Lead]

Local residents who witnessed the North Korean boat at a South Korean port of Samcheok, said the North Koreans asked them about how to get to Ulleungdo Island. This probably means that the strangers' initial destination was Ulleungdo rather than Samcheok. Now, questions remain over how they found enough fuel to sail more than 600 kilometers.

[Pkg]

This North Korean boat entered Samcheok Port undeterred. After disembarking from the boat, the North Koreans asked locals how to get to Ulleungdo Island and its exact location.

[Soundbite] (FISHERMAN AT SAMCHEOK PORT(VOICE MODIFIED)) : "The first thing they did upon arrival was asking if they could use my phone, because they needed to go to Ulleungdo Island."

Sources say that the North Korean boat sailed as close as 50 kilometers to the northeastern part of Ulleungdo Island on June 13 before arriving in Samcheok two days later. Several speculations have been raised regarding the incident, with some saying that the boat originally intended to reach Ulleungdo, but ended up passing by the island. It's also unclear how the North Koreans found enough fuel to sail such a long distance. If the boat departed from Hamkyongbuk-do Province in North Korea, crossed the Northern Limit Line, sailed all the way to the vicinity of Ulleungdo Island and then again to Samcheok, the entire distance must have exceeded 600 kilometers. Experts say that a vessel like this with a 28 horsepower engine would need at least one thousand liters of fuel to travel such a long distance. Although the possibility that the boat drifted with its engine off cannot be ruled out completely, the odds are quite low given the size of the boat and its travel route.

[Soundbite] (FISHERMAN AT SAMCHEOK PORT) : "They would need fuel tanks to travel such a distance. But they had none, as you can see."

Experts presume that before crossing the Northern Limit Line, the North Korean boat might have received additional fuel from other fishing boats in the same fleet.