By The Straits Times | Created at 2026-10-08 05:51:56 | Updated at 2026-10-09 08:14:52
1 day ago
SEOUL - The powerful sister of North Korea’s leader said on Oct 8 Seoul must show the “utmost respect” to mend ties, after Pyongyang denied responsibility for a Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) mine blast that wounded South Korean soldiers.
North Korea has denied being behind the explosion that injured three soldiers in September inside the DMZ, the heavily mined buffer dividing the two Koreas since their 1953 armistice.
Seoul as well as the US-led United Nations Command said the blast was caused by North Korean mines laid on the South Korean side of the border.
South Korea’s military demanded an official apology last week, accusing Pyongyang of “a clear violation of the Armistice Agreement”, while Seoul’s civilian leadership called for the North to return to dialogue.
“If they (South Korea) truly wish to restore relations between the DPRK and South Korea, they should be mindful of the other side’s feelings in every word and deed, and first demonstrate the utmost respect, consideration and sincerity,” North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong said on Oct 8, using her country’s official acronym.
On Oct 7, a government report showed Seoul had secured a UN sanctions exemption to send medical equipment by late November to North Korea, which has long suffered food shortages and poor healthcare infrastructure.
Kim, whose brother is North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, called the mine blast a “self-orchestrated farce”, accusing Seoul of fabricating the incident and then turning to a plan to send medical equipment to North Korea when it failed to get the response it wanted.
“Looking at the actions of the Seoul authorities, everything is riddled with unilateral judgements, unilateral decisions and unilateral announcements,” she said.
Kim claimed it meant “either they are politically immature or they are genuinely incorrigible, naturally born fools”.
North Korea’s military has placed mines and built anti-tank barriers along the frontier as part of efforts to permanently seal it off following Kim Jong Un’s designation of South Korea as his country’s “principal enemy” in 2024.
The mines responsible for the blast in September were believed to have been laid as part of Pyongyang’s border fortification work, according to South Korea’s defence minister Kang Shin-chul.
Kim Yo Jong has already ridiculed President Lee’s latest overture for dialogue as “the climax of the farce that everyone should watch”, while calling Seoul’s demand for an apology “quite ridiculous”.
Kim has also previously warned Pyongyang was “ready for everything” Seoul might do over the mine blast – remarks followed by Pyongyang’s missile launch on Oct 3.
Pyongyang said the projectile launched at the weekend was an intermediate-range strategic missile that involved the use of AI.
Along with President Lee Seoul’s Unification Minister Chung Dong-young has also proposed to Pyongyang talks to address issues along the border.
But Kim Yo Jong said on Oct 8 it was her country’s “absolute and unchangeable position” that “there will be absolutely no exchange, entanglement, or even face-to-face contact with South Korea.”
Any attempt by Seoul – “whether driven by malice or so-called ‘goodwill’ – will be regarded as a challenge to the DPRK (North Korea), a grave provocation, and an infringement upon its sovereignty,” she added. AFP
