South Korea and North Korea traded accusations on Wednesday over two explosions on September 21 near the Military Demarcation Line in the western section of the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) that injured three South Korean soldiers.
South Korea strongly demanded that North Korea apologise and take "responsible measures" over the incident and urged Pyongyang to immediately stop its "border-hardening activities," Yonhap News Agency reported.
"This constitutes a blatant violation of the Armistice Agreement and undermines the spirit of existing inter-Korean agreements and must be halted immediately," Lt. Gen. Kang Hyun-woo, chief director of operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), told reporters.
"We make it explicitly clear that North Korea bears full responsibility for any future consequences that may arise," he added.
Seoul claims that North Korean resin antipersonnel mines deliberately planted on the southern side of the Military Demarcation Line were highly likely the cause of the September 21 blasts.
North Korea denied the allegation, accusing South Korea of fabricating the findings and warning of "immediate and merciless" retaliation if its troops are fired upon.
"What should not be overlooked is the fact that the armed gangsters of the ROK are now cooking up the groundless results and 'justifying their conduct' for political and military provocation against the DPRK, openly talking about 'reasonable and corresponding enforcement of measures'," Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, said in a statement carried by the state-run Korean Central News Agency.
DPRK stands for the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, North Korea’s official name, while ROK stands for the Republic of Korea, South Korea’s official name.
Kim stressed that North Korean soldiers "have never crossed the border" while accusing the South Korean military of threatening its soldiers with warning broadcasts and shots.
"If the ROK military gangsters fire at our soldiers carrying on the permanent project for the southern border, not warning shots, our border units will take immediate and merciless retaliate attack," she said.
