At the end of World War II, the Korean Peninsula was divided into two separate States, North and South Korea. Since 1945, the two States have been in and out of open armed conflict with minor skirmishes in between. North Korea is believed to have been responsible for death and injury of South Korean civilians and marines from artillery shelling on Yeonpyeong Island on November 23, 2010 and the sinking of a South Korea warship, the Cheonan, on March 26, 2010.

South Korea ratified the Rome Statute on November 13, 2002. The Office of the Prosecutor (OTP) of the International Criminal Court (ICC) announced the opening of a preliminary examination on December 6, 2010. The OTP concluded that the sinking of a South Korean warship, the Cheonan, on March 26, 2010, was an attack on a lawful military target. The OTP further concluded the deaths on Yeonpyeong Island were not the result of attacks intentionally directed against civilians. Based on those conclusions, the OTP decided to close the preliminary examination in South Korea on June 23, 2014.

For more information on the preliminary examination in South Korea, please visit the ICC page.