South Korea proposes talks with North Korea on military demarcation line

Seoul seeks talks to forestall accidental clashes and to little tensions aft reporting repeated violations by Pyongyang.

South Korea has projected talks with North Korea to debar borderline clashes, the archetypal specified connection successful 7 years arsenic Seoul seeks to easiness subject tensions with its nuclear-armed neighbour.

Citing caller incursions by North Korean troops, Kim Hong-cheol, lawman curate for nationalist defence policy, told a quality briefing connected Monday that military-to-military channels tin assistance avert an escalation.

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“To forestall accidental clashes and easiness subject tensions, our subject officially proposes that the 2 sides clasp inter-Korean subject talks to sermon the constitution of a wide notation enactment for the MDL,” helium said, referring to the subject demarcation enactment connected their border.

Seoul and Pyongyang technically stay astatine warfare due to the fact that the 1953 Korean Armistice Agreement, which halted the struggle betwixt them, was ne'er followed by a bid treaty.

The MDL lies wrong the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ), a buffer portion that runs for 250km (160 miles) crossed the Korean Peninsula with a width of 4km (2.5 miles).

An estimated 2 cardinal mines are peppered wrong and on the border, which is besides guarded by combat troops, barbed-wire fences and vessel traps

Warning shots fired

Kim said North Korean soldiers person repeatedly crossed the demarcation enactment “while installing tactical roads, fences and laying mines”.

South Korean soldiers person fired warning shots and issued broadcasts to promote the North Koreans to retreat, helium said.

The projected subject talks travel South Korean President Lee Jae Myung’s connection of broader discussions with the North without conditions, a crisp reversal from the hawkish stance taken by his blimpish predecessor.

Lee has taken respective steps to easiness tensions since taking bureau successful June, including removing propaganda loudspeakers on the borderline and banning the dropping of anti-Pyongyang leaflets.

North Korea has yet to respond to Lee’s overtures, and if it accepts the latest proposal, it would people the archetypal subject talks betwixt the 2 sides since 2018.

Lee’s attempts to beforehand dialog with Pyongyang person replaced erstwhile South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol’s hardline attack to the North.

Yoon’s hawkish policies were halted erstwhile helium was impeached and removed from office implicit his declaration of martial instrumentality successful December.

His removal led to a drawback statesmanlike predetermination successful June, which brought Lee to power.