By Jack Kim and Kyu-seok Shim
SEOUL, Sept 30 (Reuters) – North Korea on Wednesday dismissed as a “farce” a South Korean investigation that found Pyongyang responsible for a mine blast in the Demilitarized Zone that wounded South Korean soldiers, as the UN Command said the incident constituted a violation of the Korean War armistice.
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un, accused Seoul of trying to fabricate evidence after blaming Pyongyang for last week’s explosion.
“It is too low and dirty as befitting the tribes of South Korea,” Kim said in a statement carried by state media KCNA. “Such a farce is by no means new.”
South Korea’s defence minister said on Tuesday that North Korean mines caused the blast and that it would take “corresponding” action. Kang Shin-chul also said North Korea likely planted mines as part of fortifying the border.
South Korea and the UN Command, which oversees the Korean War armistice, have been investigating the September 21 blast that wounded three South Korean personnel, including two seriously, during a reconnaissance mission inside the 4-km (2.49-mile) wide DMZ.
‘ARMISTICE AGREEMENT VIOLATION’
The UN Command in a statement on Wednesday said that it had conducted a joint on-site investigation with the South Korean military. During the investigation, the team identified another active North Korean anti-personnel mine on the South Korean side of the Military Demarcation Line bisecting the DMZ, it said.
“Based on the findings of the investigation, UNC determined that an Armistice Agreement violation occurred,” the command said, adding that it was addressing the violation through established armistice mechanisms.
Kim called it “the height of impudence” that South Korea was attempting to fabricate “material evidence” and denied North Korean troops had crossed the Military Demarcation Line while carrying out border construction work.
She said Pyongyang had made no secret of building border barriers and described the work as “a thorough exercise of sovereignty unrelated with any military purpose.”
Kim also accused South Korea of provoking tensions by firing warning shots on the pretext that North Korean troops had crossed the border. Seoul has previously said there were signs North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the line while carrying out fortification work.
“If a single bullet hits our land, they must be prepared for a lot,” Kim said, warning that North Korean border units would respond immediately if South Korean forces opened live fire on its troops.
The dispute comes as North Korea presses ahead with large-scale border fortification work, including barriers, roads and mine-laying, after redefining South Korea as a separate hostile state rather than a partner for eventual reunification.
COMPLICATES SEOUL’S PUSH FOR DIALOGUE
South Korea’s military demanded North Korea apologise and halt border fortification work.
“All responsibility for any future situation lies entirely with North Korea,” Kang Hyunwoo, a Joint Chiefs of Staff official, said in a statement.
Kim Min-seok, leader of South Korea’s ruling Democratic Party, also urged Pyongyang to apologise.
The mine incident could further complicate South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s efforts to reopen dialogue with the North and reduce military tensions on the peninsula.
Lim Eul-chul, a professor at Kyungnam University’s Institute for Far Eastern Studies, said Kim’s remarks also appeared designed to create a justification for future retaliation against South Korean warning shots or broadcasts near the border.
“North Korea is accumulating a narrative that any future clash is not the result of its own actions but a response to South Korean provocations,” Lim said.
(Reporting by Jack Kim, Kyu-seok Shim and Heejin Kim; Editing by Bill Berkrot, Jacqueline Wong and Ed Davies)
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