North Korea announces total cutoff of all roads to South Korea
- In Reports
- 04:49 PM, Oct 09, 2024
- Myind Staff
In an effort to "completely separate" the two nations, North Korea will cut off road and rail connections to South Korea as of this Wednesday. The North would "permanently shut off and block the southern border," according to its military, and fortify areas on its side.
The Korean People's Army (KPA) claimed the action was in response to war games being held in South Korea and the regular presence of US nuclear weapons in the area, characterising it as “a self-defensive measure for inhibiting war”. This signifies a rise in hostility during a period when tensions between the two Koreas are at an all-time high.
“The acute military situation prevailing on the Korean peninsula requires the armed forces of the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] to take a more resolute and stronger measure in order to more creditably defend the national security,” the KPA remarked in a report published by state media platform KCNA.
Pyongyang's declaration is essentially a symbolic move. North Korean authorities have been gradually dismantling the roads and railways that connect North Korea to the South for the past year. These routes are hardly used. In addition, Pyongyang has been pushing to alter its relationship with the South, and this comes after a series of provocative events that have strained ties between the two nations. These have included everything from missile launches to the sending of hundreds of trash balloons across North Korea's southern border.
Significantly, Kim Jong Un, the leader of North Korea, declared at the beginning of 2023 that he was giving up on reunification with the South, which sparked fears that hostilities might break out again on the Korean peninsula. “I think it is necessary to revise some contents of the Constitution of the DPRK,” Kim stated 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, recommending that changes be made to the constitution "at the next session." The following meeting took place this week and ended on Tuesday. However, no such changes were made public, despite the expectation of many observers that Pyongyang would endorse Kim's earlier remarks and amend the constitution to address border and unity issues.
A think tank analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification speculated that Pyongyang might be holding off on making any significant decisions until after the US election. In order to "align with the direction of the new (US) administration," officials may "consider adjusting the extent of constitutional revisions," Hong Min told AFP.
It remains uncertain if the discussions held during the SPA session had any bearing on North Korea's decision to cut off all roads and railways that connected it to the South.
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