North Korea building walls along border with South, Yonhap report


The construction has been taking place recently inside parts of the 2km-wide area. - PHOTO: EPA-EFE via The Straits Times/ANN

PYONGYANG/SEOUL (Bloomberg): North Korea is constructing walls and digging roads on its side of the demilitarized zone along the border with South Korea, Yonhap News reported Saturday.

The construction has been taking place recently inside parts of the 2-kilometer-wide (1.2 mile) area between the northernmost edge of the DMZ and the military demarcation line, which divides the peninsula, Yonhap said, citing an unidentified military source.

North Korea’s motive remains unclear and Yonhap didn’t say how high or wide the walls were.

Earlier this month South Korean troops fired warning shots after some North Korean soldiers carrying picks and shovels briefly trespassed the MDL, which might have to do with the construction, Yonhap said.

Relations between the two countries remain tense after North Korea recently floated trash-filled balloons into the South and Seoul retaliated by saying it would turn on loudspeakers that blare out propaganda in the area.

The two Koreas position hundreds of thousands of troops and the bulk of their firepower near the border.

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