 and the Republic of Korea (South Korea), the North announced that it will “completely cut off roads and railways” connected to South Korea.){kind=link}
In a major escalation to the worrying relations between the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (North Korea) and the Republic of Korea (South Korea), the North Korea announced that it will “completely cut off roads and railways” connected to South Korea.
However, the Korean People’s Army (KPA) specified that the act of “permanent shut-off” and blocking the southern border is motivated by self-defence, calling South Korea “the primary hostile state”. It further claimed that the South is increasing military presence near the southern borders and are “openly revealing their scheme to use armed forces in violation of the sovereignty of the DPRK”.
“To this end, a project will be launched first on October 9 to completely cut off roads and railways connected to the ROK and fortify the relevant areas of our side with strong defence structures,” said the military in a statement.
“For our army to permanently shut off and block the southern border with the ROK, the primary hostile state and invariable principal enemy, in the current situation is a self-defensive measure for inhibiting war and defending the security of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK)”. Citing an “acute military situation prevailing on the Korean peninsula”, the North Korean military said that it is preparing stronger measures to defend national security and “separate its territory from South Korea”. It claimed a message was sent to U.S. forces to prevent misunderstandings and accidental conflicts regarding upcoming fortification efforts.
“Given the critical situation where touch-and-go danger of war is ever-escalating in the area along the southern border of the DPRK, the General Staff of the KPA proclaims that it will take a substantial military step to completely separate the territory of the DPRK, where its sovereignty is exercised, from the territory of the Republic of Korea (South Korea)”, KPA said.
This statement comes at a precarious time as ties between North and South Korea are deeply strained and subject to constant escalation, raising concerns of another regional war in South-East Asia. Kim Jong-Un had earlier stated that the North had no intentions of resuming diplomatic interactions with the southern republic, declaring the Republic of Korea to be DPRK’s “principled enemy”.
It follows Kim Jong-Un’s earlier statements at North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) in January. He called for changes to the DPRK’s constitution, particularly to remove the individualistic elements establishing North Korea and South Korea as distinct states.
“I think it is necessary to revise some contents of the Constitution of the DPRK,” Kim said at a meeting of North Korea’s Supreme People’s Assembly (SPA) in January.
“In my view, it is necessary to delete such expressions in the constitution as ‘northern half’ and ‘independence, peaceful reunification and great national unity,” he added, suggesting that the constitution should be revised “at the next session”.
This also raised concerns for Seoul about the DPRK potentially revoking the 1991 Inter-Korean Basic Agreement. Officially known as the “Agreement on Reconciliation, Non-Aggression, and Exchanges and Cooperation Between the South and the North,” the agreement was a significant milestone in the relationship between North and South Korea.
Signed on December 13, 1991, during the fifth round of high-level talks in Seoul, it aimed to establish a framework for peaceful coexistence and eventual reunification. Both Koreas agreed to recognize and respect each other’s systems and to refrain from interfering in each other’s internal affairs. They also committed to not using force against each other and to resolve disputes peacefully.
Manbilas Singh is a talented writer and journalist who focuses on the finer details in every story and values integrity above everything. A self-proclaimed sleuth, he strives to expose the fine print behind seemingly mundane activities and aims to uncover the truth that is hidden from the general public. In his time away from work, he is a music aficionado and a nerd who revels in video & board games, books and Formula 1.
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