JCS says accident occurred while coordinating with UN Command

Military declines to rule on whether suspected minefield lies south of MDL

The western front demilitarized zone near the border area of Paju, Gyeonggi Province, stands quiet on Tuesday. [Yonhap]
The western front demilitarized zone near the border area of Paju, Gyeonggi Province, stands quiet on Tuesday. [Yonhap]

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff had already identified signs of North Korean mine-laying near the site of a mine explosion in the demilitarized zone of the 25th Division in northern Gyeonggi Province through satellite imagery last September, it has been confirmed. No on-site verification was carried out for more than a year afterward, drawing criticism of a delayed response.

Jang Do-young, the JCS public affairs director, confirmed at the Ministry of National Defense's regular briefing Tuesday that a statement made Monday by JCS Vice Chairman Kwon Dae-won — that "traces of North Korean mine-laying in the nearby area were identified in September 2025" — was accurate. Jang said the area was "a surveillance blind spot" and that satellite imagery had detected terrain changes consistent with suspected mine-laying.

The JCS announced interim investigation findings Monday, saying the mine explosion occurred roughly 10 meters south of the military demarcation line and approximately 10 meters from an area where terrain changes suggested North Korean troops had recently laid mines.

Jang said the military had "been in continuous consultation with UN Command in order to precisely confirm" the area identified last year, adding that the explosion occurred Sunday "while troops were clearing a search route to reach that location."

However, Jang said he did not know exactly when the military had requested an on-site investigation from UN Command or which party had caused delays in the consultations, adding that he would "look into it further."

Jang said the military was "reviewing capability reinforcements to address surveillance blind spots." When asked whether the area remains a blind spot today, he declined to answer, saying that discussing surveillance-related matters in a public setting would "benefit the enemy and compromise our operational security and capabilities."

Reporters at the briefing also raised the point that stronger safety measures should have been in place during the route-clearing operation, given that signs of North Korean mine-laying had been known for a year. Jang said "many safety measures were taken before the operation was carried out" and reiterated the apology extended to the public Monday, adding that the military was "doing its utmost for the recovery of the soldiers."

The JCS deferred judgment on whether the suspected minefield lies south of the MDL. Jang said the military was "not making that determination at this time" and that an on-site verification would be considered after the final investigation. He said the roughly 10-meter distance between the blast site and the suspected minefield was determined by combining findings from a joint investigation team, operational troops and the UN Command Military Armistice Commission, which advanced to within 2 meters of a secondary blast point Monday for a visual inspection.

Earlier, the JCS said the National Forensic Service's initial analysis detected a brownish foreign substance but no metal fragments. The military also cited a witness account that a brownish North Korean resin-type anti-personnel mine was found about 1 meter from the primary blast site, the shape of the blast crater and the extent of the injured soldiers' wounds as grounds for concluding it was "highly likely" a North Korean mine. The JCS has submitted a bulletproof helmet and body armor recovered from the scene to the National Forensic Service for further analysis.

Questions were also raised at the briefing over whether Monday's late-night announcement of the findings was timed to coincide with the president's Cabinet meeting remarks. Jang drew a line, saying the timing of the on-site investigation and the announcement "was determined by comprehensively considering the circumstances" and was "entirely unrelated to political considerations such as the president's UN General Assembly address."

On the timing of the investigation, Jang said the JCS chairman made the decision "after consulting with field commanders and receiving their recommendations." When asked what the JCS's own assessment had been, he said it would be "inappropriate to discuss the consultation process here."


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