Joint Chiefs of Staff: "One North Korean Soldier Expressed Intention to Defect"

The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced on the 24th that they had secured a North Korean soldier on the night of the 23rd along the central front. The Joint Chiefs explained, "Relevant details are being investigated by the appropriate agencies." It has been reported that the soldier expressed an intention to defect.

On the 22nd, citizens and reporters inspected the non-permanent guard post at Hwalsamori Hill on the 'DMZ Peace Trail' in Cheorwon County, Gangwon Province. The government announced that following the initial opening of the Goseong section on the 27th of last month, the Cheorwon section will be opened to the public from June 1st, with participant applications starting from the 20th. The Cheorwon section to be opened this time is 15 kilometers long and takes about three hours to travel by vehicle or on foot.
Photo by the Joint Press Corps

This marks the fourth defection since the inauguration of the Lee Jaemyung administration, and the second involving a soldier. Previously, in October last year, a North Korean soldier crossed the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) along the central front and expressed an intention to defect; after securing the individual, the military handed the person over to the relevant authorities. In addition, one male civilian crossed the MDL along the mid-western front on July 3 last year, and another male civilian was rescued south of the midline in the Han River Neutral Zone on July 31 of the same year.

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