While focus on North Korea is currently trained on its fragile relationship with the USA and its testing of nuclear missiles, there's another reason that the country has been in the news recently.
A number of ghost ships have washed up on the shores of Japan recently. According to a report by CNN, the latest was a 35-foot boat with markings in characters from the North Korean alphabet.
The body of a man was found on board, wearing a pin that depicted North Korea's founder Kim Il-sung, while another body was found floating a little a few hundred metres off the shore.
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It's one of many gruesome discoveries made off the Japanese coast in recent months. In fact, last month, 28 ships were discovered - one of which contained the skeletal remains of eight people. It brings the total found this year (so far) to 83.
According to the Daily Mail, the same month last year saw just four ships wash up. Analysts think the rise has occurred because vessels are venturing further out in more dangerous conditions to attempt to find food.
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The increasing number of ghost ships is raising concerns about the impact that international sanctions are having on the state of the country and the well-being of its citizens.
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On Tuesday morning three bodies were also found drifting near the beach in Fukaura, Aomori Prefecture. The coast guard and police are investigating in an attempt to discover their identity and see if there's any connection to the numerous wooden boats that have been found drifting in the area.
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Earlier in December, Marcus Noland, an analyst at the Peterson Institute for International Economics, told CNN that the plight of the ships' crews are a "reflection of the growing desperation in the North Korean economy."
He said that as a result of Pyongyang's nuclear and missile testing ban - which prohibits the sale of North Korean seafood to other countries - fishermen are offloading their catches on the black market in order to earn money.
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"They're having to rendezvous with foreign vessels in international waters to sell their catches on the high sea so it can be relabeled (as from Japan or South Korea)," he said.
The Sea Of Japan which separates North Korea from Japan is approximately 1,000km wide, but bad conditions have made venturing further out incredibly treacherous.
Words: Mischa Pearlman
Topics: World News, News, Japan, North Korea