North Korea: North Korea will deploy more armed forces on its South Korean border as Seol has partly suspended a five-year-old agreement with Pyongyang. It comes after North Korea claimed the successful launch of a spy satellite into space.
The launch reportedly caused South Korea to suspend the deal. According to reports, North Korea is now fully suspending the pact and restoring all military measures it had put on hold under the deal with Seol.
The no-fly zone was established in the 2018 Comprehensive Military Agreement, which the leaders of both countries signed in an effort to reduce tensions and stop a conflict from breaking out.
But North Korea has repeatedly broken the agreement by firing artillery rounds and missiles into the sea towards the south. Last December, it sent drones across the border into South Korea, with one flying as far as the capital, Seoul.
This, along with the fact that the North was already breaking the agreement, was part of Seoul’s justification for partly suspending the agreement, as per the statement.
“From now on, our army will never be bound by the September 19 North-South Military Agreement,” it said in a statement.
It vowed to remove all actions “taken to prevent military conflict in all spheres, including ground, sea, and air” and to establish “new-type military hardware and more powerful armed forces” at the border.
Pyongyang launched a rocket that was reportedly carrying its spy satellite Malligyong-1, calling the launch a “success.”
However, the South Korean military verified that the satellite had reached orbit, but they stated that it was too soon to decide whether it was operational.
Top officials in Seoul swiftly decided to resume border surveillance operations after condemning the launch. This would enable the South to keep an eye on North Korean outposts and long-range artillery.
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