UN Command: "Arm JSA Personnel"

Statement: "Rearming Considering North Korean Military's Armed Posture"

In response to the rearmament of North Korean soldiers stationed at the Joint Security Area (JSA) in Panmunjom, United Nations Command (UNC) security personnel have also begun carrying pistols.

[Image source=Reuters Yonhap News]

On the 19th, the UNC issued a statement saying, "Considering the current armed posture of the North Korean military, the UNC has authorized and qualified JSA security personnel to rearm in order to protect both civilians and soldiers." However, the UNC also conveyed to the South Korean government and North Korean military that, as per past agreements, the disarmament of the JSA would make the Korean Peninsula safer and more peaceful. The statement added, "We reassured North Korean military officials that the JSA will remain a venue for dialogue and the implementation of the armistice agreement."

This move by the UNC follows North Korea's declaration last month of the complete nullification of the 'September 19 Inter-Korean Military Agreement,' after which North Korea began restoring frontline Guard Posts (GPs) that had been dismantled or withdrawn under the military agreement. Subsequently, North Korea also abandoned the demilitarization of the JSA stipulated in the agreement, prompting South Korean JSA security personnel to rearm as well. According to military sources, after North Korean soldiers stationed at the JSA began carrying pistols at the end of last month, the South Korean government requested the UNC earlier this month to arm South Korean personnel.

Previously, as a countermeasure to North Korea's launch of a military reconnaissance satellite, the South Korean government suspended the enforcement of the 'No-Fly Zone' (Article 1, Paragraph 3) of the September 19 Military Agreement on the 22nd of last month. The next day, North Korea declared the effective nullification of the entire September 19 Military Agreement. From the 24th of last month, North Korea deployed troops to 11 GPs that had been dismantled or withdrawn under the agreement, installed observation posts, and established fortifications. They also brought in heavy weapons such as recoilless rifles. Reports indicate a sharp increase in the opening of doors of tunnel-type coastal artillery located in the Northern Limit Line (NLL) area of the West Sea by North Korean forces. Around this time, North Korea also resumed arming troops within the JSA, which had been fully disarmed under the September 19 Agreement.

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