Kang Shin-chul
Role at the time: Minister of National Defense, speaking to reporters after his inauguration
Mixed or conditional
Statement summary
On September 22, 2026, his first day as defense minister, Kang Shin-chul urged North Korea to stop its border fortification and said the explosion the day before could be one of the secondary effects of North Korea's border-hardening. He also said the military had not confirmed whether the suspected minefield, the patrol route and the explosion site matched, and that the investigation must determine that.
“There are secondary effects that stem from North Korea's border-hardening, and this (explosion) could be one of them”