“The South Korean and U.S. militaries are in principle to deter North Korea from making provocations through their combined efforts”.
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The talks were held shortly after a Saturday deadline set by North Korea for the South to dismantle loudspeakers broadcasting anti-North Korean propaganda at their border.
Kim said the loudspeaker campaign, which began after the blast, would stop at noon Tuesday unless an “abnormal” event happens.
The US are reviewing the possibility of deploying “strategic” military assets in South Korea in order to put pressure on Pyongyang, South Korean officials said Monday.
North Korea had repeatedly denied any responsibility for the blasts, and apologies for anything – especially where South Korea is concerned – are not in its usual diplomatic vocabulary.
Kim Min-seok, South Korean Defence Ministry Spokesman said at a press conference that government’s position was to deter the North’s provocation.
The agreement includes a promise from North Korea to “prevent further provocations”, per the report. Observers said the messages could travel about 12 miles at night and about half that during the day, well into North Korean territory.
South Korean President Park Geun Hye said Monday she would “never back off” in the military standoff and that she would seek a clear apology from North Korea over the mine explosions.
That would leave open the issue of the propaganda broadcasts, which Seoul had vowed to continue in the face of an ultimatum from Pyongyang to desist or face military action.
“Moreover, North Korea has doubled artillery power along the border”.
The agreement, which was sealed after two days of long talks, stops the propaganda broadcasts against the North. The South had restarted them after two of its soldiers were injured by a landmine explosion earlier this month. The final meeting began on Sunday evening after a hiatus in the late afternoon that invited speculation of a political impasse. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un had last Friday declared a “quasi-state of war” and warned that his country was prepared to go to all-out war. They did come to an agreement that they both found mutually satisfactory.
That’s right, Daniel. The UN chief, through a statement on Saturday, welcomed the high-level talks between the two Koreas and encouraged both sides to use the opportunity to pave the way for de-escalating tensions on the peninsula.
Despite such highly charged rhetoric in the media, which is itself not particularly unusual, activity in the capital remains normal and calm Sunday.
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Eighty-three South Koreans and 88 North Koreans had emotional reunions with relatives at a North Korean mountain resort in February, but there have been none since then.
