South Korea questions Chinese national found at sea in rubber boat

The location where he was found is located roughly on the shortest straight line between South Korea and China of about 310 kilometres.

Officials at the Chinese embassy in Seoul could not be reached for comment with telephone calls diverted to a recorded message. Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, asked about the issue at a regular briefing, said they had no knowledge of the matter.

In 2023, another Chinese national, who a South Korean activist said was fleeing authorities at home, was detained by South Korea's coast guard after riding more than 300 kilometres on a jet ski with five containers of fuel.

(Reporting by Jack Kim; Additional reporting by Liz Lee in Beijing Editing by Ed Davies)