SEOUL: North Korea on Tuesday (Oct 15) blew up sections of the deeply symbolic roads connecting it to the South, Seoul’s military said, adding it had conducted a “counter-fire” operation in response.
Pyongyang’s military last week vowed to permanently seal its southern border after spending months laying mines and building anti-tank barriers in the wake of leader Kim Jong Un’s declaring the South his country’s “principal enemy”.
Last week, North Korea accused Seoul of using drones to drop anti-regime propaganda leaflets on the capital Pyongyang, with Kim convening a security meeting to direct a plan of “immediate military action” in response, state media reported on Tuesday.
“North Korean has detonated parts of the Gyeongui and Donghae roads north of the Military Demarcation Line,” the Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Tuesday, referring to inter-Korean infrastructure that once connected the two countries.
“There has been no damage to our military, and our forces conducted counter-fire in areas south of the MDL,” it added.
The roads have long been shuttered, but destroying them sends a clear message that Kim is not prepared to negotiate with the South, experts said.
“This is a practical military measure related to the hostile dual-state system that North Korea has frequently mentioned,” Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, told AFP.
The North may also be looking to erect more physical barriers along the border, Yang said, adding that the road detonations could be “preparatory work for its construction of those walls”.
South Korea’s military released video footage showing North Korean soldiers in military uniforms setting up what appeared to be cameras on tripods ahead of a huge explosion, which blew up sections of the Gyeongui road.
The explosion emitted thick, billowing smoke and took place amid lush forests. More footage, apparently from after the blasts, showed excavators digging, while North Koreans in military uniforms worked as large red trucks arrived.
The Seoul military also released separate footage showing North Korea blowing up a section of the Donghae road, on the east coast.
South Korea’s unification ministry slammed the North for what it called an “extremely abnormal” provocation, adding that Seoul had shouldered millions in costs for building the infrastructure.
“North Korea still has repayment obligations regarding this funding,” it added.
