North takes DMZ land mine incident to UN, warns of exercising right to self-defense

North Korea has raised the issue of the land mine explosion in the demilitarized zone (DMZ) with the United Nations Security Council, saying that the South fabricated the incident, and warned that it could exercise its right to self-defense if its sovereignty or personnel are threatened.

The move is seen as part of its broader strategy to step up diplomatic pressure on Seoul while leveraging closer ties with Beijing and Moscow to strengthen its position in potential negotiations with Washington.

North Korea’s permanent representative to the UN sent a letter to the president of the UN Security Council on Sunday, protesting the South’s handling of the land mine blast in the DMZ on Sept. 21 and accusing it of “groundlessly shifting the blame” to the North, according to an English statement run by the North’s Korean Central News Agency (KCNA) on Monday.

The South’s military had earlier concluded the land mine explosions were North Korean. 

In the letter, Pyongyang accused Seoul of committing “such extremely reckless provocations as opening fire on [its] service personnel involved in the border fortification project to pose a serious threat to their lives and safety,” the KCNA reported. It claimed such actions violated Article 2(4) of the UN Charter.

Pyongyang then warned that under Article 51 of the charter, it had the right to exercise self-defense if Seoul “invades the territory of [its] country even a millimeter or perpetrates a direct provocation doing harm to [its] personnel’s safety and lives.”

It also reiterated its earlier claim that the land mine explosion was “fabricated by the ROK,” referring to the Republic of Korea, South Korea’s official name.

The letter appeared to be a response to the South Korean government’s move on Thursday to raise North Korea’s alleged violations of the 1950-53 Korean War Armistice Agreement to the UN Security Council.

Pyongyang has also stepped up its criticism of Seoul on the international stage.

A North Korean representative to the UN criticized the South’s accusation regarding the blast as a “poor trick” during a meeting of the UN General Assembly’s First Committee, which deals with disarmament and international security, on Oct. 8.

At another meeting of the same committee on Saturday, the representative challenged Seoul over its measures toward Pyongyang, asking whether the former intended to develop its own nuclear weapons or attack the latter using U.S. nuclear weapons.

North Korea’s recent diplomatic moves align with the foreign policy direction outlined by its leader Kim Jong-un. In a policy speech to the Supreme People’s Assembly in March, Kim called for a departure from past diplomatic practices.

“We should get rid of the diplomatic practices which had been adjusted to the old standards and yardsticks of the past […] to cope with the rapidly changing situation and the unpredictable geopolitical reality with full preparations and employ the diplomatic tactics and methods of external activities becoming to the new status and prestige of the State,” he said, according to KCNA.

His remarks signaled an intention to pursue a more assertive diplomatic strategy based on what Pyongyang sees as its strengthened strategic position.

Kim’s brief visit to Dandong, China, on Saturday could also be viewed as part of that approach. By traveling directly to China via the New Yalu River Bridge, he appeared to reaffirm the close ties between Pyongyang and Beijing and demonstrate his willingness to expand economic cooperation.

At the same time, the North’s continued strategic cooperation with Russia suggests an effort to broaden its diplomatic options.

Analysts say that North Korea is seeking to use its traditional allies, China and Russia, to ease the burden of international sanctions and overcome diplomatic isolation while strengthening its bargaining position with the United States on the premise that it is a nuclear-armed state.

“[Kim] appears to be keeping his distance even from U.S. President Donald Trump, who wants to hold talks with him, by raising the bar for dialogue,” said Oh Gyeong-seob, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification.

“He is […] using the favorable strategic environment created by closer ties with China and Russia to secure a stronger position in negotiations with the United States.”

BY CHUNG YEONG-GYO [[email protected]]