GRACE SITUATION
Seoul’s military on Tuesday accused Pyongyang of attempting to shift the blame for escalating military tensions, while confirming the use of loudspeakers and warning shots as “legitimate defensive measures to prevent North Korean troops from crossing the MDL and to drive back troops that have crossed it”.
Jin Yong-sung, chairman of South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, also ordered the military to “respond with firm resolve” should North Korea use Seoul’s actions as a pretext for aggressive action.
Pyongyang has rejected claims it was behind the explosion that injured three South Korean soldiers inside the DMZ and mockingly dismissed calls for an apology.
The country on Monday called the situation along the border “grave”, saying it was considering deploying additional “tactical strike means” to the area.
On Thursday, Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of leader Kim Jong Un, said the North would place loudspeakers on standby along the border “within days” and had put unspecified “new counter means” on alert.
South Korea’s foreign ministry also said Thursday it planned to send a letter to the president of the UN Security Council later in the day over the landmine incident, which it called a “clear violation of the armistice agreement”.
President Lee Jae Myung has called for the North to return to dialogue, an overture Kim Yo Jong later slammed as “the climax of the farce”.
