[WEEKLY FOCUS] N. KOREA RESTORES GUARD POSTS

North Korea appears to be increasing its military activities near the inter-Korean border,.. following its recent termination of the 2018 military agreement. The regime is believed to be rebuilding its guard posts and bringing back heavy firearms along the border. For more on this, we have our defense correspondent, Choi Min-jung, in the studio. Min-jung, what exactly is the North up to? Ye-eun, South Korea’s military revealed, that North Korea has been working to restore its guard posts in the Demilitarized Zone, right after it announced last week that it would restore all military measures, and terminate the September 19th inter-Korean military agreement. Seoul’s military revealed pictures on Monday,.. showing that North Korea dispatched soldiers and heavy weapons, to restore its surveillance posts near the inter-Korean border. The soldiers were also spotted on guard duty at night. Now, under the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement, North Korea destroyed ten out of its eleven guard posts near the border, as part of efforts to reduce tensions on the Korean Peninsula. And so did South Korea. But restoration efforts are now being seen in the North at all eleven guard posts. South Korea’s defense ministry said the military will be fully prepared to immediately implement countermeasures. “We clearly state that our military is closely monitoring North Korea’s provocations and is fully prepared to punish North Korea immediately, strongly, and to the end, based on Seoul and Washington’s strengthened joint defense posture.“ Speaking of countermeasures,.. is South Korea likely to restore its own guard posts in response? Well, South Korea’s Deputy Principal National Security Advisor said, Seoul is considering the same measures in response, meaning we COULD be restoring frontline guard posts as well. Speaking to reporters on Monday, the new chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Kim Myung-soo, also hinted at the possibility of restoring South Korea’s guard posts as a corresponding measure,.. saying that it comes down to how the (quote) “enemy“ decides to act. On top of this,.. South Korea’s defense ministry reiterated that it’s necessary to COMPLETELY suspend the September 19th military pact,.. as the South has only PARTIALLY suspended the agreement, on a clause relating to aerial surveillance. “The Ministry of National Defense has continuously explained that the military agreement imposes various restrictions on military operations. We have conveyed our opinion to relevant entities that, if necessary, a complete suspension is needed.“ We also hear that North Korean soldiers stationed at Panmunjom are now armed with handguns. South Korean authorities for their part, have called on soldiers here to respond decisively to any provocation, is that the case? Right, Pyongyang is reportedly arming its soldiers who are deployed at Panmunjom Joint Security Area. According to multiple military sources, North Korean soldiers have been carrying sidearms while on duty, since the latter half of last week. South Korean soldiers in the area remain unarmed. The United Nations Command, which is in charge of the Joint Security Area, is reportedly weighing options while closely monitoring Pyongyang’s moves. Under the military agreement in 2018, soldiers on both sides in Panmunjom agreed to be unarmed while on duty. But, if the North persists in arming its troops in the JSA, it’s possible that South Korean soldiers will be ordered to carry firearms as well. Now all this tension at the border was sparked by North Korea’s recent spy satellite launch. Any updates on this? As you said, North Korea’s increased military activities, come after it terminated the inter-Korean military agreement, following South Korea’s decision to partially suspend the pact, due to North Korea’s recent spy satellite launch. Earlier this week, Pyongyang said its spy satellite had taken images of the White House, the Pentagon, and other U.S. military facilities. But the U.S. has downplayed North Korea’s claims, saying that there are “plenty“ of images of the White House and the Pentagon already available online. Experts are also skeptical of the quality of the images, as the regime has yet to release the photos they have allegedly taken, and it’s also known to take, four to six months to verify whether a satellite is working properly. And in response to Pyongyang’s launch, Washington on Thursday slapped additional sanctions against North Korea... #SouthKorea #NorthKorea #2018_military_agreement #Spy_satellite #DMZ #GP #대한민국 #북한 #2018_군사_합의 #파기 #판문점 #Arirang_News #아리랑뉴스 📣 Facebook : 📣 Twitter : 📣 Homepage : 2023-12-02, 12:00 (KST)