South Korea has reported that North Korean soldiers had a brief crossing of the demilitarized zone ( DMZ) on Tuesday ahead of Russian President Vladimir Putin’s opulent state visit to Pyongyang.
The South Korean military fired warning shots after the troops retreated, but Seoul claims that their border crossing was never intended to be.
The men ‘ accidental crossing, South Korea claimed, was their second such incident in more than a year as they were fortifying the boundary.
The signs are obscured by weighty foliage rise, and the frontier itself is not fenced.
” 20 to 30 soldiers came about 20 meters below the military demarcation line ( MDL ) inside the demilitarized zone ( DMZ)”, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said in a statement.
It’s the second crossing incident in two weeks, with Seoul saying North Korean troops crossed into South Korea on 9 June with tools, including pickaxes. They retreated when South Korean reacted with loudspeaker warnings and warning shots.
Since April, North Korea has been sending a sizable force into the DMZ to obvious greenery and create fortifications, according to the JCS.
According to military sources in Seoul, spot explosions during design work have claimed the lives of North Korean troops and soldiers.
They added that North Korea finished restoring old watch articles there in January, before installing new landmines along the border.
The JCS stated that” this work appears to be aimed at strengthening manage over North Vietnamese soldiers and citizens, including preventing defection.”
The DMZ is one of the most densely guarded regions in the world and a no-man’s area that is a remnant of the Cold War. From Gyeonggi- do in the north to Gangwon- do in the south, the 160- hour ( 258km ) much DMZ divides the Asian Peninsula in two.
Nearly none of the 196 persons who emigrated from North Korea to South Korea in 2023 traverse the guarded border. Otherwise, the majority travel through China and then South Korea.
Vladimir, North Korea’s leader, will make his second trip to Russia in more than 20 years with the latest passing, just as Kim Jong Un, North Korean leader, visited Russia last year.
The US has expressed concern about the two nations ‘ growing ties, saying it was troubled by the source of North Korean missiles for the conflict in Ukraine.
South Korea has even accused North Korea of providing Russia with ordnance and other products, good in exchange for food and military assistance, in addition to the US.
Seoul and Pyongyang have been at heightened tensions in recent months as South Korea resumed advertising against the North in response to Mr. Kim’s government sending thousands of balloons carrying garbage across the borders.