Cheong Wa Dae on DMZ Mine Accident Site Investigation: "Military Decision... Unrelated to Lee's UN Speech"

[Financial News] Cheong Wa Dae said on the 29th that the military's on-site investigation into the mine explosion in the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) had nothing to do with President Lee Jae Myung's UN speech. It explained that the Republic of Korea Joint Chiefs of Staff (ROK JCS) and the United Nations Command (UNC) made the decision based on military judgment after considering recommendations from field commanders.
In a media notice issued that day, Cheong Wa Dae said, "The military's on-site investigation into this mine accident has absolutely nothing to do with the president's UN speech."
It added, "The military's on-site investigation was planned and decided solely on the basis of military judgment by the ROK JCS and the UNC, after considering recommendations from field commanders."
Earlier, some media outlets reported that the military had secured testimony that an object resembling a North Korean wooden-box mine had been spotted on the day of the accident, but disclosed the information only later. They also reported opposition suspicions that the investigation and announcement had been delayed out of consideration for President Lee Jae Myung's address to the United Nations General Assembly.
The accident occurred on the 21st while troops were clearing a search route in the DMZ under the jurisdiction of the Army 25th Division in Paju-si, Gyeonggi Province. Three military officers were injured, two of them seriously. On the 28th, one week after the accident, the ROK JCS announced an interim finding that the mine was "highly likely to have been a North Korean mine."
Regarding the timing of the on-site investigation, the military said it needed time for the injured soldiers to receive treatment and stabilize, to prepare the operation by forming an investigation team, and to conduct a rehearsal with the UNC. The ROK JCS explained that treatment and stabilization of the injured personnel took place on the 22nd and 23rd, preparations for the investigation were made on the 24th and 25th, and an assessment of the operational environment was conducted with the UNC on the 26th.
In his keynote address to the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on the 22nd (local time), President Lee Jae Myung presented a vision for peaceful coexistence on the Korean Peninsula and expressed his intention to pursue dialogue with North Korea.
[email protected] Seong Seok-woo Reporter