North Korean Military Detected Installing Walls and Conducting Road Work in the DMZ

Possibility of Barrier Construction... Could Be a Boundary Facility
North Korean Troops Crossed Military Demarcation Line During Work on the 9th

It has been reported that North Korean troops are carrying out work such as installing walls and paving roads in some areas within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

According to military sources on the 15th, North Korean troops have recently been building walls, digging the ground, and constructing roads in some areas between the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) and the northern boundary line of the DMZ (a line 2 km north of the MDL). However, further analysis is needed to determine whether this work aims to erect a long barrier north of the MDL or simply to build boundary and defense facilities at certain points.

North Korean soldiers are working at a North Korean military post viewed from the border area in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, on the 9th, when the government decided to resume loudspeaker broadcasts to North Korea.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

The wall construction is likely related to the incident on the 9th when dozens of North Korean soldiers crossed the MDL but retreated after warnings and gunfire from our military. At that time, around 12:30 PM, North Korean troops temporarily crossed the MDL while working with pickaxes and shovels in the central front DMZ. Previously, after Chairman Kim Jong-un declared at the end of last year that inter-Korean relations were "relations between two warring states," North Korea has physically severed connections with the South by planting landmines on three inter-Korean connecting roads: the Gyeongui Line, the Donghae Line, and the Hwasalmeori tactical road. Therefore, there is speculation that the wall currently being built by North Korea could be a long barrier along the armistice line reminiscent of the Berlin Wall from the Cold War era.

Between the 248 km-long Military Demarcation Line and the northern boundary line of the DMZ, there is barbed wire connecting North Korean frontline guard posts (GPs), and North Korean troops are also reportedly reinforcing this barbed wire. A Joint Chiefs of Staff official stated, "Our military is closely monitoring North Korean activities," and added, "We are maintaining a firm readiness posture while closely cooperating with the United Nations Command, which oversees the DMZ."

Meanwhile, North Korea has sent over 1,600 balloons carrying waste southward in four rounds from the 28th of last month to the 9th of this month, simultaneously conducting GPS signal jamming attacks and continuing provocations. In response, our government announced on the morning of the 9th, "We will install loudspeakers for broadcasts toward the North and conduct broadcasts today," and the Joint Chiefs of Staff carried out loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea that afternoon. This marked the resumption of broadcasts toward North Korea after a six-year hiatus since 2018.