(2nd LD) S. Korea proposes military talks with N. Korea to ease tensions along border

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(ATTN: REWRITES headline; ADDS more background in paras 12-18) By Kim Seung-yeon

SEOUL, Oct. 23 (Yonhap) -- South Korea renewed its offer Friday to hold military talks with North Korea to discuss their conflicting views on where the inter-Korean border sits, seeking to ease tensions sparked by last month's land mine blast inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Seoul and Pyongyang have traded sharp rhetoric since South Korea blamed the North for the Sept. 21 mine blast inside the DMZ that injured three South Korean troops. Pyongyang has denied responsibility and vowed to take military actions along the border, if needed.

"Different perceptions remain over the Military Demarcation Line (MDL)," Deputy Defense Minister Kim Hong-cheol said in a press briefing, referring to the border separating the two Koreas.

"South Korea's Defense Ministry hereby officially proposes holding inter-Korean military talks with North Korean authorities to jointly verify the locations of the land-based MDL, restore military communication lines and discuss measures to prevent accidental clashes along the border," he said.

Kim said trilateral dialogue involving the U.N. Command (UNC), which administers and enforces the Armistice Agreement governing the border area, can also be considered.

"If necessary, a trilateral meeting including the UNC is also possible," he said. "We expect a positive response from the North's side."

Deputy Defense Minister for Policy Kim Hong-cheol makes a statement regarding the inter-Korean border at the defense ministry in Seoul on Oct. 23, 2026. (Yonhap)

The latest escalation of tensions comes amid Seoul's suspicions that North Korean forces have repeatedly crossed the MDL to carry out border fortification work, such as erecting fences and laying mines, in potential violation of the armistice that halted the 1950-53 Korean War.

The mine blast occurred while on a mission to clear a path for a joint investigation with the UNC into the North's border-hardening activities.

Kim voiced concern over possible clashes in the future if both sides continue to let their soldiers serve in the border area based on conflicting interpretations of the boundary lines, calling for "extraordinary measures" to resolve the issue.

"The damage will not be limited to any single side," he said.

Kim said that the recent increase in the North's border activities, and the warning broadcasts and warning shots from the South's side to make North Korean troops crossing the MDL retreat are directly linked to the current circumstances.

Under the Armistice Agreement signed in 1953, the UNC and North Korea installed 1,292 marker posts along the MDL to mark the ceasefire line. However, most of them have deteriorated or been lost over time, leaving only about 200 identifiable markers as of now.

The South Korean military defines the MDL based on the mapping designated by the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency. The UNC uses a different set of coordinates established through its own 2016 MDL project.

North Korea is believed to use its own version of the MDL based on its physical markers.

Since North Korean leader Kim Jong-un declared relations with the South as "two hostile states to each other," the North's military has stepped up border reinforcement work in a move seen as solidifying the regime's policy toward Seoul.

The South's military estimates the North has planted 960,000 land mines along the MDL since 2024, according to multiple lawmakers in Seoul.

South Korea has sought to open up dialogue with Pyongyang to discuss the discrepancies in the border demarcation and made a similar proposal for senior-level military talks last year. But Pyongyang has not responded to the proposal.

The UNC, which has legal jurisdiction on MDL management under the armistice, has shared the need to clarify the MDL baseline and reportedly conveyed its position to Pyongyang in the past.

Seoul informed the UNC of its plan to offer the military talks ahead of Friday's announcement, a defense ministry official told reporters.

"We did that prior (to the announcement), in accordance with protocol," he said, without elaborating further.

In a statement issued shortly after the announcement, the UNC reaffirmed its commitment to upholding the Armistice Agreement, and "reducing the risk of miscalculation and unintended escalation" along the MDL.

The UNC, however, declined to confirm whether it has reached the North Korean side about the South's dialogue offer, saying it does not publicly disclose its communication with Pyongyang.

The UNC maintains a hotline, known as the "pink phone," with the North's Korean People's Army, currently the only remaining communication channel between the two Koreas after Pyongyang severed all ties with Seoul.

North Korean soldiers work on what appears to be a mission to construct tactical roads and fences near a border area, seen from South Korea's western border island of Ganghwa, in this photo taken Oct. 22, 2026. (Yonhap)

elly@yna.co.kr (END)

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(2nd LD) S. Korea proposes military talks with N. Korea to ease tensions along border

这将使谷歌能够向您展示与您的搜索匹配或相关的韩联社新闻文章。

（注意：重写标题；第12-18段增加更多背景信息）金承妍

首尔，10 月 23 日（韩联社）——韩国周五再次提出与朝鲜举行军事会谈，讨论双方在朝韩边界位置上的分歧，以期缓解上个月非军事区（DMZ）内地雷爆炸事件引发的紧张局势。

自韩国指责朝鲜在9月21日非军事区内制造地雷爆炸事件，导致三名韩国士兵受伤以来，首尔和平壤之间一直存在激烈言辞交锋。平壤否认对此事负责，并誓言如有必要将在边境采取军事行动。

“对于军事分界线（MDL）仍然存在不同的看法，”韩国国防部副部长金洪哲在新闻发布会上表示，他指的是分隔朝韩两国的边界。

“韩国国防部在此正式提议与朝鲜当局举行韩朝军事会谈，共同核实陆上军事分界线的位置，恢复军事通信线路，并讨论防止边境地区发生意外冲突的措施，”他说。

金表示，也可以考虑让负责管理和执行边境地区停战协定的联合国军司令部参与三方对话。

他说：“如有必要，也可以举行包括北卡罗来纳大学在内的三方会谈。我们期待北方方面做出积极回应。”

2026年10月23日，韩国国防部政策副部长金洪哲在首尔国防部就朝韩边境问题发表声明。（韩联社）

最新一轮紧张局势升级，源于首尔方面怀疑朝鲜军队多次越过军事分界线进行边境防御工事建设，例如架设围栏和埋设地雷，这可能违反了结束 1950-53 年朝鲜战争的停战协定。

这次地雷爆炸发生在执行一项任务期间，该任务旨在为与北卡罗来纳大学联合调查北方边境强化活动开辟道路。

金正恩对双方继续基于对边界线的不同解释而让士兵在边境地区服役表示担忧，认为这可能会导致未来发生冲突，并呼吁采取“非常措施”解决这一问题。

他说：“损失不会局限于任何一方。”

金表示，近期朝鲜边境活动的增加，以及韩国方面发出警告广播和鸣枪示警，迫使越过军事分界线的朝鲜军队撤退，都与当前形势直接相关。

根据1953年签署的停战协定，联合国军和朝鲜在军事分界线沿线设立了1292个界碑，以标示停火线。然而，随着时间的推移，其中大部分界碑已经损坏或遗失，目前仅存约200个可辨认的界碑。

韩国军方根据美国国家地理空间情报局指定的地图来界定军事距离界限（MDL）。而北卡罗来纳大学则使用一套不同的坐标系，该坐标系是其在2016年开展的MDL项目所建立的。

据信朝鲜使用根据其物理特征制定的自身版本的MDL。

自朝鲜领导人金正恩宣布朝韩关系为“两个敌对国家”以来，朝鲜军方加强了边境防御工作，此举被视为巩固了该政权对首尔的政策。

据首尔多位议员称，韩国军方估计，自 2024 年以来，朝鲜已在军事分界线沿线埋设了 96 万枚地雷。

韩国一直寻求与平壤展开对话，讨论边界划分分歧，并于去年提出举行高级别军事会谈的类似提议。但平壤方面尚未对此提议作出回应。

根据停战协定，联合国军对军事决策线的管理拥有法律管辖权，联合国军曾表示需要明确军事决策线的基线，据报道，联合国军过去也曾向平壤表达过这一立场。

国防部一名官员告诉记者，首尔方面已将提出举行军事会谈的计划告知联合国军，该计划在周五的正式宣布之前就已提出。

“我们（在宣布之前）按照规定做了这件事，”他说道，但没有进一步详细说明。

在公告发布后不久发表的一份声明中，联合国大会重申了其维护停战协定的承诺，并表示将“降低多区划线沿线误判和意外升级的风险”。

然而，联合国大会拒绝证实是否已就韩国提出的对话提议与朝鲜方面取得联系，称其不会公开披露与平壤的沟通情况。

联合国大会与朝鲜人民军保持着一条被称为“粉红电话”的热线，这是平壤切断与首尔所有联系后，目前朝韩之间仅存的沟通渠道。

这张照片拍摄于2026年10月22日，从韩国西部边境岛屿江华岛拍摄到，朝鲜士兵似乎正在边境附近修建战术道路和围栏。（韩联社）

elly@yna.co.kr（完）

国会议员称，自2024年以来，朝鲜可能在朝韩边境埋设了96万枚地雷。

韩国致函联合国安理会，敦促朝鲜对非军事区地雷爆炸事件承担责任。

（第二条）朝鲜领导人妹妹警告将采取边境反制措施，扩音器将在数日内准备就绪

（第二条）朝鲜领导人妹妹称，朝鲜将恢复向韩国进行宣传广播。

（第二份声明）韩国警告称，朝鲜威胁向边境部署打击力量，韩国将采取“果断报复”。

（第二项议程）韩国提议与朝鲜举行军事会谈，以缓和边境紧张局势。