South and North Korea are reviewing the disarmament of border checkpoints as part of their arrangements to stop military hostilities. For the first time since the division in 1945, both countries sent several inspection teams with soldiers to the other side of the heavily fortified border.
This mutual site visit is a „milestone in reducing military tensions in the Korean peninsula and building trust,“ said the South Korean Ministry of Defense in Seoul.
The Ministry showed after the end of the inspections in North Korea images of how soldiers at the site of the destroyed posts took pictures with cameras. In recent weeks, both countries had cleared eleven posts of troops and weapons in the border area. The building parts at 20 of these checkpoints on both sides have been completely demolished. Both countries decided to leave one post each as a place of remembrance.
In December, it should then be checked whether they had abided by the agreements. The task of the first border posts is intended as a test. The experience is intended to be the basis for dismantling all armed posts within the demilitarized zone (DMZ) that separates the peninsula since the Korean War (1950-53) on four kilometers wide and about 250 kilometers in length.
The move is part of a military agreement signed by defense ministers of both countries at the in-country summit in Pyongyang in September.
