[Anchor]

The South Korean military also stated that North Korea's work to fortify its border has expanded across the entire Military Demarcation Line (MDL). Incursions across the demarcation line have been detected more than 50 times this year alone, and it was identified that up to a daily average of 7,000 North Korean personnel have been mobilized for tasks such as laying landmines.

Reporter Park Chan-beom reports on this.

[Reporter]

The Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) stated that North Korea's "border fortification" work began in April 2024 and expanded to the entire MDL, or Military Demarcation Line, starting in March of last year.

According to the South Korean military, North Korean troops' incursions across the MDL—carried out to build minefields, construct tactical roads, and install barbed wire—were detected 9 times in 2024 and 17 times in 2025, but have already reached over 50 times this year, with incidents concentrated along the eastern front.

[Kim Sung-yoon / Director of Intelligence Analysis, Joint Chiefs of Staff: As (North Korean troops) patrol an area about 10 meters south of the MDL (on the eastern front) every day, incursions have been repeated about 40 times at a single location.]

This year, North Korea has deployed up to a daily average of 7,000 personnel along the MDL section to install minefields and fences, and the extent of border violations across several areas where mines were laid south of the MDL varied by region.

[Kim Sung-yoon / Director of Intelligence Analysis, Joint Chiefs of Staff: Several areas where North Korean troops are presumed to have laid landmines south of the MDL have been identified, and they crossed an average of about 20 meters south of the MDL.]

The South Korean military expects North Korea's border fortification work—specifically the installation of fences and establishment of minefields—to be completed within the next two years.

A military official also noted that differing perceptions of the MDL baseline among the South Korean military, the North Korean military, and the United Nations Command (UNC) pose an issue, stating, "Military talks are necessary to align the MDL."

Meanwhile, an audit by the Ministry of National Defense further confirmed instances of so-called "empty rifle guard duty"—standing guard without live ammunition loaded in firearms—at frontline units.

According to details reported by the Defense Ministry's Office of the Inspector General to the office of Representative Kang Sun-young of the People Power Party, cases of "empty rifle guard duty" were identified in the 2nd, 3rd, and 5th Corps, in addition to the previously disclosed 1st Corps.

Regarding the announcement of the final investigation findings on the DMZ landmine explosion incident today (October 5), the Democratic Party called it a clear violation of the Armistice Agreement by North Korea and demanded an apology, while the People Power Party criticized the military, saying that the lack of resumed loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea or strong military countermeasures has turned it into a "vegetative military."

(Video by Oh Young-choon, Kim Jun-hee | Graphics by Seo Seung-hyun)