North Korea Notifies U.N. Command of Border Fortification Plans, Marking First Contact in Months | Be Korea-savvy

North Korea Notifies U.N. Command of Border Fortification Plans, Marking First Contact in Months


This file photo, taken from the border city of Paju, about 30 kilometers northwest of Seoul, on May 2, 2025, shows structures in North Korea. (Yonhap)

This file photo, taken from the border city of Paju, about 30 kilometers northwest of Seoul, on May 2, 2025, shows structures in North Korea. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, June 30 (Korea Bizwire) — North Korea has informed the U.S.-led U.N. Command (UNC) of its plans to build fortifications inside the border between the two Koreas, Seoul’s defense ministry said Monday, marking the first notification of its kind in more than six months.

The North notified the multinational command tasked with monitoring inter-Korean border activities Wednesday that it would resume construction of barriers and barbed wire fences on its side of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), according to the Dong-A Ilbo, a local newspaper.

When asked about the report, a ministry official confirmed the notification did take place, while a UNC official declined to comment about its communication with the North Korean military.

Since April last year, North Korea has deployed troops to the DMZ to plant mines, erect apparent anti-tank barriers and reinforce roads after the country’s leader Kim Jong-un described inter-Korean relations as those between “two states hostile to each other” in late 2023.

Last October, North Korea unveiled that it had informed the UNC it would cut off all roads and railways connected to South Korea and build defense structures before blowing up cross-border roads once seen as symbols of inter-Korean reconciliation.

The construction efforts reportedly temporarily halted last winter before resuming in the spring.

Some observers said the latest notification may be a possible sign of Pyongyang’s willingness to engage in communication after the launch of the new Lee Jae Myung administration in Seoul this month, which has vowed to mend frayed inter-Korean ties.

The defense ministry said the North’s notification could be seen as a “meaningful” message in relation to easing inter-Korean tensions, but noted it was too soon to make a judgment.

The UNC said the North’s delivering prior notifications in general is “useful” to mitigate risk of misinterpretation and miscalculation.

(Yonhap)

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