▲ Cha Ji-hoon, South Korean Ambassador to the UN
The South Korean government has sent a letter to the President of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) regarding North Korea's landmine explosion incident in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and recent actions escalating tensions along the Military Demarcation Line (MDL).
According to the South Korean Mission to the UN on October 22 (local time), South Korean Ambassador to the UN Cha Ji-hoon sent a letter of about two pages earlier in the day to the Permanent Representative of Greece to the UN, the current UNSC president country.
Through this letter, the government reportedly explained the investigation results showing that the explosion was caused by landmines planted by the North Korean military, and emphasized that this constitutes a "violation of the Armistice Agreement."
The letter also reportedly includes demands for North Korea's apology and responsible measures, while urging Pyongyang to engage in dialogue to prevent the escalation of tensions and restore trust.
It is also known to have drawn attention to North Korea's recent framing of the South Korean military's legitimate operational activities along the MDL as "provocations" in an attempt to shift the blame for heightened tensions onto the South.
A government official said, "As the UNSC President has approved the circulation of the letter, it is expected to be distributed to UNSC member states later today."
The letter sent by the government is slated to be adopted as an official UN document and published on the UNSC website within a few days.
This letter delivery is interpreted as part of the South Korean government's efforts to strengthen its diplomatic response against the international community, as North Korea recently steps up military threats along the MDL and raises the intensity of its offensive against the South on the UN stage.
North Korea has warned of the resumption of cross-border loudspeaker broadcasts, unveiled on-site inspections of its so-called "southern border fortification," and claimed that the South Korean military's legitimate response to North Korean troop crossings over the MDL constitutes a "provocation."
During the 14th meeting of the UN General Assembly First Committee (Disarmament and International Security) on October 20, the North Korean mission claimed, "From August 1 to October 17, the South Korean military conducted warning broadcasts 2,870 times and warning shots 201 times," adding, "Hostile provocations that have been carried out even more blatantly since the fabricated landmine explosion incident have crossed the red line."
In response, the South Korean government's move is interpreted as an effort to leave North Korea's armistice violations as an official UNSC record and actively inform the international community that North Korea bears the responsibility for the military escalation.
However, even if the letter is registered as an official UNSC document, it is a procedure to officially record the South Korean government's position and does not automatically lead to a separate UNSC resolution or an official condemnation of North Korea.
The South Korean government previously sent a letter to the UNSC President pointing out North Korea's armistice violations during the North's wooden box landmine provocation in the DMZ in August 2015.
(Photo: Provided by the South Korean Mission to the UN, Yonhap News)
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