[Anchor]

A court has ruled that North Korea, which blew up the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office six years ago, must pay 44.6 billion won in damages to the South Korean government. While this marks the first time the South Korean government—rather than an individual—has filed a damages lawsuit against North Korea, it appears there is no actual way to get the money back.

Reporter Jang Hun-gyeong has the details.

[Reporter]

Amid a loud roar, the four-story Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office in Kaesong collapsed, and the outer walls and windows of the 15-story joint support center building also caved in.

The Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office was established in the Kaesong Industrial Complex in September 2018, following the April 27 Panmunjom Declaration by the inter-Korean leaders.

However, two years later in June 2020, North Korea unilaterally blew up the liaison office, taking issue with anti-Pyongyang leaflet distribution by some North Korean defector groups.

[North Korea's Korean Central Television (June 2020): The North-South joint liaison office was tragically destroyed with a loud explosion.]

Three years later, the South Korean government filed a damages lawsuit just two days before the statute of limitations expired.

The plaintiff was the Republic of Korea, and the defendant was the Democratic People's Republic of Korea.

[Koo Byoung-sam / Then Spokesperson for the Ministry of Unification (June 14, 2023): North Korea's demolition of the inter-Korean joint liaison office in a violent manner is legally and clearly an illegal act.]

The court ruled that North Korea must compensate approximately 44.62 billion won for the damage caused to the liaison office and the joint support center claimed by the South Korean government.

This acknowledges that North Korea's unilateral facility destruction constituted an infringement of property rights.

The court stated, "It is an act that severely infringed upon the property of our government," adding, "It is not a simple violation of an inter-Korean agreement, but an unconstitutional provocative act that violates the principle of peaceful unification."

However, the possibility of North Korea complying with the South Korean court ruling is slim, and there are practically no means to enforce the fulfillment of the compensation.

Even if an attempt were made to bring the case to the International Court of Justice, mutual consent is required, making referral itself impossible if North Korea refuses.

The Ministry of Unification stated, "We will review necessary measures," and added, "We hope that inter-Korean issues can be resolved through dialogue and cooperation."

(Video Reported by Kim Seung-tae | Video Edited by Choi Jin-hwa)