"No Political Strife" vs. "Subservience to North Korea"... Lawmakers to Question Officials Tomorrow

[Anchor]

Democratic Party lawmakers visited the Army's 25th Infantry Division, where a landmine explosion occurred. Emphasizing that the incident must not become a "subject of political strife," they called for a thorough investigation. Lawmakers from the People Power Party did not join, arguing that the visit would only disrupt the unit. Sharpening their criticism, they accused the ruling camp of "subservience to North Korea" for failing to identify it as a "North Korean landmine."

Reporter Park Chan-beom has the details.

[Reporter]

Excluding People Power Party lawmakers, members of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee visited the Army's 25th Infantry Division, where the landmine explosion occurred.

Military authorities stated that the results of the forensic appraisal requested from the National Forensic Service will be released soon.

[Kim Byung-joo / Democratic Party Lawmaker: You requested (the National Forensic Service) to analyze key evidence, fragments, and equipment, right?]

[Military Official: We initially sent 10 collected items, including clothing and gear, (to the National Forensic Service) on September 22.]

The Democratic Party maintains that this incident must not be turned into a political fight.

[Kim Min-seok / Democratic Party Leader: The investigation into the explosion must be conducted transparently and thoroughly, without political strife or partisan calculations.]

People Power Party lawmakers did not participate, arguing that visiting the 25th Division would only disrupt the unit.

[Lim Jong-deuk / People Power Party Lawmaker: What is needed on the ground is handling the accident, maintaining readiness, and stabilizing the troops.]

They lashed out at the ruling camp for walking on eggshells around North Korea, calling it "subservience to North Korea."

[Jang Dong-hyeok / People Power Party Leader: If the president ordered a cover-up of the accident, it goes beyond impeachment and constitutes treason and an act of aiding the enemy that warrants an immediate investigation.]

Visiting the National Assembly, Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul denied allegations that on-site investigations were delayed out of concern over North Korea, stating that stern action will be taken if it is confirmed to be the work of the North Korean military.

[Kang Shin-chul / Defense Minister: Corresponding responses and measures are necessary, and we will carry them out.]

Amid this, the ruling and opposition parties agreed to hold a plenary session of the National Defense Committee tomorrow afternoon (September 29) to question officials on pending issues regarding the landmine explosion.

(Video by Lee Seung-hwan and Shin Dong-hwan | Video Editing by Park Seon-soo)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.