[Anchor]
The South Korean military estimates that North Korea has planted as many as 960,000 landmines in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) since 2024. In connection with a landmine explosion on the western front, the Ministry of National Defense has proposed military talks to North Korea.
Senior defense correspondent Kim Tae-hoon reports.
[Reporter]
The Ministry of National Defense today (October 23) proposed holding talks between military authorities to North Korea regarding the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) within the Demilitarized Zone.
It added that a trilateral meeting including the United Nations Command, which is responsible for managing the MDL, is also possible.
[Kim Hong-cheol / Deputy Minister for National Defense Policy: "We propose holding inter-Korean military authorities' talks to mutually verify the clear location of the ground Military Demarcation Line, restore military communication lines, and discuss measures to prevent accidental clashes in border areas..."]
The Defense Ministry emphasized the need to clearly establish the MDL, pointing out that differing claims by the two Koreas and the UN Command over its location led to unfortunate incidents such as the landmine blast on the western front on September 21.
[Kim Hong-cheol / Deputy Minister for National Defense Policy: "Without extraordinary measures, service members will operate based on their own understanding of its location, which is a factor that heightens the risk of accidental clashes."]
In fact, the South Korean military assesses that North Korea has laid 960,000 landmines in the DMZ since 2024 as part of its so-called 'border fortification' efforts, and that a significant portion was buried south of the MDL.
The military concluded that the western front explosion was caused by precisely that type of mine.
While military tensions between the South and the North are escalating following North Korea's statements yesterday and the day before signaling the resumption of loudspeaker broadcasts toward the South, the South Korean government has set a policy of 'proportional response' but has yet to find a definitive solution.
Today's proposal for inter-Korean military talks is also viewed as an exit strategy put forward before the situation deteriorates further.
However, it remains uncertain whether North Korea, which did not respond to the Defense Ministry's proposal for military talks in November last year, will accept the latest offer.
Video by Choi Dae-woong | Video Editing by Choi Jin-hwa
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