North Korea blew up parts of inter-Korean highways on its side of the border on Tuesday, according to the South Korean military (JCS), destroying what was once a symbol of the two Koreas’ cooperation.
“North Korean forces carried out explosions, presumably to block inter-Korean highways” in Gyeongui and Donghae around noon, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
South Korean army responded with warning shots south of the military demarcation line separating the two Koreas, the JCS said, adding that it has strengthened surveillance and preparation in coordination with the United States.
The JCS said North Korea also deployed heavy equipment on its side, apparently to clear debris after the explosions.
South Korea’s Unification Ministry expressed deep regret over the explosions, accusing its northern neighbor of repeating “regressive acts.”
“This act reflects the same behavior that North Korea exhibited four years ago,” he said in a statement, referring to the North’s blowing up of an inter-Korean liaison office in its border city of Kaesong in June 2020 after becoming enraged because Defectors in the South sent propaganda leaflets across the border.
On Wednesday of last week, North Korea announced that it was cutting road and rail connections with South Korea and fortifying areas on its side of the border, amid rising tensions between the two countries.
It claimed the danger of war was increasing along the border and called the move a military move to completely separate its territory from that of South Korea, according to a state media report.
The road links were part of projects to promote inter-Korean friendship and cooperation, which began after the first North-South summit in history in 2000.
But construction of the highway, which had been suspended whenever bilateral relations deteriorated, was halted after the coming to power in 2022 of South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol, a conservative who signaled a shift toward a tougher stance on relations. Inter-Korean.
North Korea has also claimed that South Korea had flown over its airspace with drones on three occasions earlier this month. It announced on Sunday that it had ordered artillery units along the border to be “fully prepared to open fire” in response to any new drone flights.
Kim Yo Jong, sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, said Tuesday that there was “clear evidence” that “South Korean military gangsters are the main culprits of the hostile provocation” by intruding into the skies of Pyongyang, the capital. of the country, according to the official Korean Central News Agency.
South Korea has declined to confirm whether it was its military or a civilian organization that sent the drones.
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