South Korea fires ‘warning shots’ after North Korean soldiers cross demarcation line

South Korea on Tuesday, April 8, fired warning shots after North Korean soldiers crossed the national border, reported the news agency AP, citing South Korean officials aware of the development.

In an official statement, the South Korean Military said that approximately 10 North Korean soldiers returned to their nation after South Korea made warning broadcasts and later fired those warning shots.

As per the report, North Korean soldiers violated the military demarcation line towards the eastern section of the border at 5 p.m. on Tuesday, local time. South Korea is now in the process of closely monitoring North Korean activities in the border region.

North Korea and South Korea's border is called the Demilitarized Zone, which has occasionally witnessed violent confrontations between the two nations.

In June 2024, the North Korean troops briefly crossed the border, after which warning shots from the South Korean military prompted them to move back, reported the news agency.

The motive behind the intrusion has not been determined, as per the news agency.

Korean border tensions

North Korea and South Korea share a 248-kilometer-long border, which is 4 kilometres in width and is considered to be one of the most heavily armed borders in the world.

As per the agency report, there are nearly 2 million mines spread around the border area, which has been guarded by barbed wire fences, tank traps and combat troops on both sides since the Korean War of 1950-53.

The tensions between the two nations are raging now as the North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un continues to show the military nuclear capabilities of the nation. He also aligned himself with Russian President Vladimir Putin’s war on Ukraine.

As per the report, Kim Jong Un is ignoring calls from Seoul (Capital of Korea) and Washington, United States, to resume denuclearization talks.

Ever since US President Donald Trump made his White House comeback on Janaury 20, he has promised to reach out to Kim Jong Un to revive the diplomacy talks between the nations. However, the report also mentions that North Korea has not responded to Trump's remarks, and they said that U.S. hostilities against the nation have deepened since the inauguration ceremony.

Meanwhile, in South Korea, people are amid a leadership vacuum after they removed President Yoon Suk Yeol last week over his ill-fated imposition of martial law, reported the news agency.