Bayan News – The South Korean military announced on Monday (November 27th) that North Korea intends to establish guard posts on its southern border by deploying forces, which were dismantled according to the 2018 agreement with Seoul, following the launch of a spy satellite.
According to international media reports, in response to the satellite launch that intensified tensions on the Korean Peninsula, Seoul announced that it partially suspended the implementation of this agreement to reduce border tensions.
This reaction from Seoul led Pyongyang to completely stop the implementation of this agreement as well.
A South Korean military official told the French news agency that North Korea has recently redeployed armed military units to establish guard posts once again.
The South Korean news agency “Yonhap,” citing a military official, emphasized that North Korean soldiers have been observed “reconstructing guard posts” since last Saturday, predicting the return of 11 dismantled guard posts according to the five-year agreement.
A released photo by the South Korean army showed four North Korean soldiers reconstructing a guard tower in the demilitarized zone between the two countries.
Increasing Seoul’s Concerns
North Korea’s acceleration in developing its weapons programs causes significant concerns for Seoul.
Since the launch of the North Korean spy satellite, Seoul has installed “monitoring and identification capabilities” at the border, and the South Korean military considers this step a “necessary measure” to defend South Korea against escalating threats from North Korea.
In its response, Pyongyang emphasized that it would station “stronger armed forces with new military equipment in the region along the military demarcation line” between the two countries.
