"Stop Appeasing North Korea" North's Demolition of Liaison Office Sparks Confusion and Betrayal Among Citizens

North Korea Blows Up Kaesong Inter-Korean Liaison Office on 16th
Civilians Met at Seoul Station Express "The Measures Were Excessive" in Disbelief

On the morning of the 17th, citizens gathered in the Seoul Station waiting room to watch news related to North Korea's demolition of the inter-Korean liaison office. Photo by Min Jun-young, intern reporter mjy7051@asiae.co.kr

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon, Intern Reporter Min Jun-young] As North Korea blew up the Kaesong Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office on the 16th, citizens watching the event mostly expressed feelings of bewilderment and concern, saying they could not understand North Korea’s actions. In particular, while North Korea had previously directed verbal attacks at President Moon Jae-in that were akin to "word bombs," this time they took actual action by carrying out the explosion, leading to criticism that the degree of provocation had gone too far.

Citizen A (80), whom we met at the Seoul Station waiting room that day, expressed strong emotions regarding North Korea’s destruction of the liaison office. He said, "Recently, inter-Korean relations have been on thin ice, so I expected some kind of provocation to occur," adding, "I was uneasy when Kim Yo-jong, North Korea’s first deputy director of the Workers’ Party, recently mentioned the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office."

He continued, "We now need to respond firmly to North Korea without trying to appease them," raising his voice, "How long do we have to keep catering to North Korea? We should not blindly continue a conciliatory policy toward the North but rather pursue diplomacy with a balanced approach of carrot and stick."

Before and after the demolition of the Inter-Korean Liaison Office reported by North Korea. / Yonhap News

There were also criticisms that the explosion went beyond acceptable limits. B (26), a freelancer, said, "I never imagined that North Korea would blow up the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office, which serves as a communication channel between the two Koreas," criticizing, "Although we have faced multiple provocations from the military, this provocation crossed the line."

He added, "I don’t understand why the conciliatory stance toward North Korea is being maintained despite repeated policy failures," asserting, "Sanctions against North Korea should be enforced strongly and decisively, but it seems we keep being led by the North."

He also said, "Since only the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office was destroyed and there was no direct harm to citizens, I wasn’t too shocked," but warned, "If we don’t respond firmly to provocations, North Korea will continue to underestimate us."

On the other hand, some expressed a view of cautious observation. College student C (20) said, "Although North Korea had threatened to blow up the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office for several days, I thought it would remain just a verbal warning, so I was surprised when they actually carried it out."

However, C added, "For now, the conciliatory policy toward North Korea is moving in a different direction than expected, but we need to carefully consider whether strong sanctions should be imposed."

Office worker D (29) said, "I’m indifferent to politics, but North Korea has been continuously provoking us for a long time," adding, "Because provocations happen so often, I wasn’t even tense, and it didn’t disrupt daily life."

He continued, "The policy toward North Korea needs to be somewhat stronger, but it shouldn’t be excessive, nor should it be as lenient as it is now."

North Korea reportedly blew up the Inter-Korean Liaison Office at around 2:50 p.m. on the 16th, according to the Korean Central News Agency on the 17th. /Yonhap News

Meanwhile, on the previous day (the 16th), North Korea’s Korean Central Broadcasting Station reported that the Kaesong Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office had been blown up. The broadcast reported at 4:50 p.m., "At 2:50 p.m. on the 16th, with a loud explosion, the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office was miserably destroyed."

The broadcast stated, "In response to the enraged public sentiment demanding that the culprits and those who condoned them pay the price, all communication lines between the North and South were cut off, and our side took measures to completely destroy the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office located in the Kaesong Industrial Complex."

Earlier, Kim Yo-jong, North Korea’s first deputy director of the Workers’ Party, declared in a statement on the 13th that she was handing over the authority for the 'next hostile action' to the General Staff of the Korean People’s Army, and said, "Soon you will witness the miserable sight of the useless Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office collapsing without a trace."

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