Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

Ministry of National Defense: “We received a notice from the North Korean side yesterday”

Via the military communication line on the west coast
one guard post on each side to be preserved as a symbol of peace

The Ministry of National Defense said on November 20th, “At 3 p.m. today, North Korea demolished ten of its guard posts (GPs) as part of withdrawal on a trial basis.” An official with the ministry explained, “North Korea gave us a notice via the military communication line on the west coast that it would be blowing up ten of its guard posts at 3 p.m. on Tuesday."

At the third inter-Korean summit held in Pyongyang on September 19th, the two Koreas signed the 'Military agreement for the implementation of the Panmunjom Declaration,' focusing on the prohibition of all hostile acts against each other in all areas, including on the ground, at sea and in the air. The withdrawal of GPs in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) on a trial basis is part of the implementation of the Sept. 19 military agreement.

Both sides are pushing forward with the withdrawal of firearms, equipment, and personnel on duty, the complete dismantling of facilities, and mutual verification, for the implementation of their decision to withdraw 11 GPs on each side, which are within 1 kilometer of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL), by the end of the year. When the military authorities of South and North Korea began the withdrawal work on November 1, they hoisted 4m-wide and 3m-long yellow flags to make sure the GPs to be withdrawn could be identified and investigated. Prior to the withdrawal work, the two sides decided to preserve one GP on each side for their historic and symbolic value and their peaceful use in the future.

On November 11th, the two Koreas completed withdrawal of troops and firearms from a total of 22 GPs, the target GPs on a trial basis. On the same day, the Republic of Korean ministry of national defense revealed to the public the site where GPs on our side were blown up.

An official from the ministry said, “The military authorities of South and North Korea will finish withdrawing a total of 20 GPs by the end of November. The two Koreas had originally agreed to destroy the GPs. With mutual verification procedures, the two sides will make thorough efforts to complete withdrawal and destruction of the GPs by the end of December.”

By Chul-Hwan, Kim < droid001@dema.mil.kr >

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