Min Hong-cheol: "North Korea's Provocation Not a Sudden Decision... Concerns Over 9·19 Agreement Breakdown"

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jin-young] Min Hong-cheol, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea elected as the chairman of the National Defense Committee of the 21st National Assembly, said on the 17th that North Korea's successive provocations “are difficult to see as decisions made suddenly just yesterday or today.” He also expressed concerns about the possible termination of the September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the same day, Min said on MBC Radio’s ‘Kim Jong-bae’s Focus’ in the morning, “North Korea is currently taking swift and planned actions. It seems that these plans have been in place for quite some time.” He added, “The justification for the provocations was probably the leaflet campaigns against North Korea,” and said, “It seems North Korea has found a pretext to latch onto.”

However, regarding the possibility of unannounced direct provocations by North Korea, he dismissed the idea, saying, “I don’t think that will happen.” Min explained, “If there were direct provocations, wouldn’t that damage the trust between South and North Korea? North Korea is unlikely to go that far.” He continued, “The current series of measures also include signals to the United States. It would be a burden for North Korea to carry out direct provocations and lead the progress in North Korea-US relations to a catastrophe.”

When asked by the host whether North Korea has ultimately entered the process of terminating the September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement, he replied, “It seems so,” and expressed concern, saying, “Looking at the announcements to deploy brigade-level or artillery units in the Kaesong Industrial Complex or Mount Kumgang areas, and the strict orders to resume military exercises in the West Sea, it is worrisome.”

Regarding the leaflet campaigns against North Korea planned by defector groups on the 25th, he urged restraint, fearing additional provocations. He emphasized, “All military conflicts do not occur as deliberate and intentional clashes. Sometimes accidental clashes happen by chance and escalate into large-scale conflicts,” and added, “I hope they will refrain from leaflet campaigns. Right now, managing the situation well is a very important point.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.