Ministry of Unification seeks necessary measures to prevent recurrence of DMZ landmine explosions

Necessary measures to prevent recurrence of ‘misfortunes’ such as landmine explosions

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Ha Chae-rim = The Ministry of Unification said that it will "unwaveringly pursue the policy of peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula" despite North Korea's backlash and threats following the explosion of a North Korean landmine buried in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

At a meeting with reporters at the Seoul Government Complex on this day, an official of the Ministry of Unification was asked what its position was on the statement made by Labor Party Director Kim Yo-jong, which was released the previous day, by saying, "The Ministry of Unification will take necessary measures together with related ministries to prevent misfortunes like this landmine explosion from recurring."

This official said, "Through Kim Yo-jong's statement, we once again confirmed that the wall of distrust between North and South Korea is high due to the hostile and confrontational policies of the past few years," and emphasized, "Ending long-standing hostility and confrontation and creating peace without the need for fighting is the most realistic way to protect the lives and safety of the people."

In his speech commemorating Armed Forces Day, President Lee Jae-myung described the DMZ land mine explosion as an “unfortunate accident,” and a Ministry of Unification official used the expression “an unfortunate accident like a land mine explosion.”

Earlier, in a statement released through the Korean Central News Agency the day before, Kim Yo-jong denied responsibility for the DMZ land mine explosion, calling it a "self-made farce of Seoul," and threatened "merciless retaliation" if the South Korean military fired live fire.

The Ministry of Unification is said to be analyzing Director Kim's statement as an attempt to justify the 'border fortification' project.