SEOUL:  , North Korea on Tuesday ( Oct 15 ) blew up sections of the deeply symbolic roads connecting it to the South, Seoul’s military said, adding it had conducted a” counter-fire” operation in response.
Kim Jong Un’s declaration of the South as his country’s “principal foe” led Pyongyang’s defense to pledge to completely seal its southern border last month. The military spent months laying mines and building anti-tank barriers in response.
Kim convened a security conference to lead a program of “immediate military action” in response to the North Korean accusations last week that Seoul used drones to cut anti-regime advertising leaflets on the capital Pyongyang, according to state media reports on Tuesday.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff reported on Tuesday that North Korea had detonated components of the Gyeongui and Donghae roads north of the Defense Separation Line, referring to inter-Korean system that had once connected the two nations.
” There has been no harm to our military, and our troops conducted counter-fire in areas west of the MDL”, it added.
The routes have been closed for a while, but their destruction sends a clear message that Kim is not willing to negotiate with the South, according to authorities.
According to Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul,” This is a useful military measure related to the hostile dual-state structure that North Korea has generally mentioned.”
According to Yang, the North may also be considering building more natural barriers along the frontier, adding that the street detonations could serve as “preparatory work for its development of those surfaces.”
North Korean military dressed as soldiers in military uniforms setting up what appeared to be cams on tripods before a massive explosion that destroyed portions of the Gyeongui path, were captured on video by the North Korean army.
The blast emitted heavy, billowing smoke and took position amid lush woodland. More images, evidently from after the blows, showed tractors digging, while North Koreans in military clothes worked as large dark vehicles arrived.
Additionally, split videos were released by the Seoul army that showed North Korea bombing a section of the east coast’s Donghae road.
South Korea’s unity government slammed the North for what it called an “extremely irregular” offense, adding that Seoul had shouldered million in costs for building the equipment.
” North Korea also has repayment responsibilities regarding this funding”, it added.