ed Land mine provocation

The South Korean military has concluded that North Korea was responsible for three land mines that exploded and maimed two soldiers on patrol last week on the South Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

According to a joint probe by the Ministry of National Defense and the United Nations Command, North Korean soldiers crossed the border and laid the mines, three of which were tripped by members of a South Korean border patrol on Aug. 4. One South Korean soldier lost both legs and another lost a foot.

Judging from the conclusion of the investigation, it’s almost certain that North Korean soldiers planted the mines with a clear intention to injure our soldiers at a time when the bitter memories of the sinking of the Cheonan warship in 2010 are still vivid. This act of provocation is a clear violation of the armistice that prohibits all kinds of hostilities inside the DMZ and should not be condoned.

In its statement, the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff urged Pyongyang to apologize and punish those responsible. A spokesman for the presidential office also demanded an apology, Tuesday, claiming that the North Korean leadership must take full responsibility for the blasts. As part of retaliatory measures, the South Korean military resumed cross-border propaganda broadcasts Monday afternoon for the first time in 11 years.

North Korea’s latest provocation is particularly disappointing as it comes at a time when both Koreas are preparing to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Korean Peninsula from Japan’s colonial rule amid heightened expectations for better inter-Korean ties.

Considering that our innocent soldiers fell victim to the North’s mean provocation, the military’s fury and vow for revenge is understandable. But the top military brass should refrain from excessive excitement and needs to tackle the precarious situation calmly and precisely.

The South Korean military retrieved 43 fragments from the site of the explosion and reached the conclusion that they were the North Korean army’s wooden-box land mines. We also support the military’s finding that these were not old mines that had drifted onto the south side of the DMZ because of rain or shifting soil, given that the area where the soldiers were patrolling was on higher ground than places where North Korean mines have been planted.

All this requires our military to secure a “smoking gun” for the North’s mine attack and hold the isolationist state accountable for the provocation through subsequent talks.

The most important thing is to ramp up border security to brace against further provocations, considering that the reclusive state has been extremely sensitive to Seoul’s propaganda campaign. Also, it’s necessary to upgrade our border surveillance equipment and improve manuals on search operations inside the DMZ.