On October 15, 2024, North Korea News reported that North Korea had blown up the northern sections of unused roads that once connected it with South Korea. These roads were specifically the Gyeongui and Donghae lines. The roads were originally constructed with South Korean funds and materials.
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According to the latest North Korea news, On October 15, 2024, North Korea used explosives to destroy parts of the Gyeongui line on the West coast and the Donghae line on the East coast.
In response to the explosions, South Korea’s military immediately reacted by firing warning shots near the border. The South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff stated that they have increased military readiness to monitor North Korean movements closely.
Over the past year, North Korea has enhanced its military defenses along the border, deploying missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads, laying land mines and constructing anti-tank barriers.
The road destruction fits into a strategy of fortifying its border and showing military strength. Experts in North Korea such as Yang Moo-jin, president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul speculate that these explosions could be a precursor to building more walls or physical barriers.
This is in line with Kim Jong-un’s abandonment of the unification goal in favor of a dual-state system.
Earlier this year, Kim Jong-un declared South Korea as the North’s principal enemy and discarded the goal of peaceful reunification. The destruction of the roads is the indication that North Korea is no longer interested in fostering diplomatic relations with Seoul.
Kim’s sister, Kim Yo-jong also issued strong statements accusing the South of sending drones with propaganda materials into North Korea. In a speech, she warned that the South would face severe consequences if it continued its alleged provocations.
In response to the North’s destruction of the roads, South Korean forces fired warning shots. South Korea has also bolstered its military cooperation with the United States.
According to the latest North Korea news, South Korea has announced plans to deploy advanced defense technologies including drone-melting lasers. These lasers are part of the StarWars Project, are designed to neutralize North Korean drones.
The lasers shoot an invisible beam that costs just $1.45 per use.
The demolition came in response to escalating tensions between North and South Korea including North Korea’s accusation that South Korea had flown drones over Pyongyang to drop propaganda leaflets.
In 2020, North Korea blew up a South Korean-built liaison office building near the border in retaliation for civilian-led leafleting campaigns.
Previous instances of destruction have included the demolition of tunnels at North Korea’s nuclear test site in 2018 and the blowing up of a nuclear cooling tower in 2008.
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According to the latest North Korea news, Kim has ordered that South Korea be officially designated as North Korea’s invariable principal enemy.
This destruction of inter-Korean roads shows Kim’s strategy of distancing North Korea from its southern neighbor while seeking direct negotiations with the United States, as the nuclear standoff continues in the region.
North Korea News confirmed that South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff had taken immediate action, bolstering their military posture.
South Korean forces fired within southern sections of the border as a precaution, though the exact nature of their response was not fully disclosed.
The South Korean Unification Ministry condemned the explosions as highly abnormal and regressive, stating that they violated previous inter-Korean agreements.
This action follows developments in which North Korea vowed to permanently block its border with South Korea and enhance its front-line defenses.
In previous months, North Korea News had reported that North Korea had begun planting mines, installing anti-tank barriers and dismantling other elements of the inter-Korean infrastructure along the border.
South Korean officials have also noted that North Korea’s behavior may be motivated by a desire to prevent defectors from crossing the border or undermining South Korea’s cultural and political influence on the North.
The tension leading to the destruction of the roads can be traced to North Korea News reports earlier in October 2024, when Pyongyang accused South Korea of sending drones to drop propaganda leaflets over its capital.
North Korea alleged that it had clear evidence of South Korea’s involvement and threatened military retaliation if the drones appeared again.
Kim Yo Jong, sister of Kim Jong Un warned that South Korea would pay a dear price for its alleged provocations.
According to the latest North Korea news, South Korea has refused to confirm whether it sent drones, but has firmly stated that any threats to the safety of its citizens would be met with consequences.
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