North Korean soldiers build tactical roads and fences as part of efforts to fortify the inter-Korean border in Kaepung County, Hwanghae Province, North Korea, as seen from Ganghwa County, Incheon, on Oct. 23.YONHAP
North Korea told the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) that the land mine explosion in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) last month was staged by South Korea, rejecting Seoul’s complaint that the blast violated the 1950-53 Korean War Armistice Agreement.
"The 'mine explosion incident,' fabricated by the ROK, is a sinister obstructive move to brand as a 'military invasion,' delay and impede the DPRK's fortification of its southern border, and a farce to evade the responsibility for the ever-escalating tensions on the Korean Peninsula," North Korea’s ambassador to the United Nations wrote in the letter to the president of the UNSC on Sunday, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) the following day. "The DPRK's fortification of its southern border is a legitimate and just exercise of its sovereignty going in strict conformity with the UN Charter and international law as it is a self-defensive measure to defend its territorial security from outside threats of aggression."
ROK is the acronym for South Korea’s official name, the Republic of Korea, while DPRK is the acronym for North Korea, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.
The mine explosion occurred on Sept. 21 just south of the military demarcation line (MDL), the de facto border between the two Koreas, seriously wounding three South Korean soldiers. The UN Command, which oversees the armistice, said on Sept. 30 that a violation had occurred after a joint investigation with the South Korean military found a North Korean antipersonnel mine south of the MDL. North Korea has denied responsibility, defending the fences and roads it has been building on its side of the border as a self-defense measure.
It also accused the South of "unhesitatingly committing such extremely reckless provocations as opening fire on our service personnel involved in the border fortification project to pose a serious threat to their lives and safety." It claimed such actions by the South Korean military violated Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, which prohibits the threat or use of force.
South Korean troops fired warning shots in August when several North Korean soldiers crossed the MDL on the eastern front, the first such incident this year. North Korean troops crossed the line 17 times last year, mostly while clearing land near the border as part of the fortification work.
A North Korean flag flutters at the propaganda village of Gijung-dong in North Korea, in this picture taken near the truce village of Panmunjom inside the demilitarized zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas, on July 19, 2022.REUTERS/YONHAP
"If the ROK invades the territory of our country even a millimeter or perpetrates a direct provocation doing harm to our personnel's safety and lives, the DPRK is legally entitled to exercise the right to self-defense specified in Article 51 of the UN Charter," it warned.
The letter appears to respond to one South Korean UN Ambassador Cha Ji-hoon sent last Thursday to Greece’s UN ambassador, whose country holds the UNSC presidency this month. In it, Cha called the Sept. 21 mine explosion and the North’s escalating activity along the MDL violations of the armistice, and urged Pyongyang to issue a formal apology and take responsible measures.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
