Public disputes about relations between North Korea and South Korea, the Demilitarized Zone and the 1953 Armistice Agreement, and security on the Korean Peninsula involving the two Korean governments and the United Nations Command.
Published coverage on this page: 1 case · 2 statements. Statements are ordered newest first.
Seoul's military says North Korean mines likely caused two September 21 DMZ blasts that wounded three soldiers. North Korea calls the findings groundless. The UN Command said it identified an active North Korean mine south of the line but named no side.
Published
Read the caseLabels describe a response to the linked claim or the action explained in the statement summary. Choose one or more.
2 matching statements
Role at the time: Department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, in a press statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency
Response to this claim
Kim Yo Jong said in a press statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency on September 30, 2026 that South Korea's investigation results on the mine explosion are groundless and that South Korea is trying to fabricate evidence, and that North Korean soldiers have never crossed the border.
Quotation excerpt
“The "crossing the border" of our soldiers touted by the ROK military is a deliberate and planned strained assertion to shift the responsibility for escalating tension on to the DPRK. Clearly speaking, our soldiers have never crossed the…”
“The "crossing the border" of our soldiers touted by the ROK military is a deliberate and planned strained assertion to shift the responsibility for escalating tension on to the DPRK. Clearly speaking, our soldiers have never crossed the border. This is a clear cavil and a provocation. The ROK military should think first of all about what the world will say about its inability to distinguish its own land and other's land, failing to properly distinguish the boundary which can be confirmed by the naked eye.”
The case asks whether North Korean forces planted mines south of the MDL, which depends in part on whether North Korean soldiers crossed the line. Kim said her soldiers have never crossed the border and called the crossing claim an assertion made to shift responsibility. In her account a disputed factual claim is untrue, so we labeled it Denied. The passage does not discuss the mines directly and does not say whether North Korea regards the blast site as its own side of the line.
Role at the time: Department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, in a press statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency
Response to this claim
Kim Yo Jong said in a press statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency on September 30, 2026 that South Korea's investigation results on the mine explosion are groundless and that South Korea is trying to fabricate evidence, and that North Korean soldiers have never crossed the border.
Quotation excerpt
“In conclusion, the incident is a clear farce reminiscent of the "wooden-box mine incident" which disturbed the world more than ten years ago, in consideration of the time and method of provocation. At that time the puppet forces forcibly…”
“In conclusion, the incident is a clear farce reminiscent of the "wooden-box mine incident" which disturbed the world more than ten years ago, in consideration of the time and method of provocation. At that time the puppet forces forcibly linked the "mine explosion incident" that occurred on the western border with the DPRK and continuously escalated the tension under the pretext of it. What should not be overlooked is the fact that the armed gangsters of the ROK are now cooking up the groundless results and "justifying their conduct" for political and military provocation against the DPRK, openly talking about "reasonable and corresponding enforcement of measures". How can we sit and watch their despicable act of rashly doubting anyone after exploding a mine of doubtful provenance and talking about the breach of the Armistice Agreement.”
The case asks whether North Korean forces planted the mines. Kim said South Korea's results are groundless and the incident "a clear farce," and questioned the mine's provenance. In her account the South Korean attribution is untrue, so we labeled it Denied. She rejects the attribution but does not give another account of who laid the mines.
Kim Min-seok is a South Korean politician and a member of the National Assembly for Yeongdeungpo-eul. In September 2026 he was leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, the governing party.
1 case and 1 statement
Kang Hyun-woo is a lieutenant general in the South Korean military and the chief director of operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The operations directorate he leads plans and directs the South Korean armed forces' operations.
1 case and 1 statement
Kim Yo Jong is a senior official of North Korea's ruling Workers' Party of Korea and the sister of leader Kim Jong Un. State media identified her in September 2026 as a department director of the party's Central Committee. She issues statements on relations with South Korea and the United States that the Korean Central News Agency publishes.
1 case and 2 statements
Kang Shin-chul is South Korea's minister of national defense. A retired four-star Army general, he was deputy commander of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command before President Lee Jae Myung nominated him as defense minister on August 30, 2026. He took office on September 22, 2026.
1 case and 2 statements
Lee Jae Myung is the 21st president of South Korea, in office since June 2025, and a member of the Democratic Party of Korea. Before the presidency he was a lawyer, mayor of Seongnam and governor of Gyeonggi Province.
1 case and 1 statement
Kwon Dae-won is a lieutenant general in the South Korean Army and the vice chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the second-ranking position on the body that commands the Republic of Korea armed forces.
1 case and 1 statement
Jang Dong-hyeok is a South Korean politician and a member of the National Assembly. In September 2026 he was chair of the People Power Party, the main opposition party.
1 case and 1 statement
