Foreign Ministry: Effect Matters More Than Action on Landmine Blast; Cautious on Immediate Sanctions Against North Korea

[Financial News] The Foreign Ministry maintained a cautious stance on immediate sanctions against North Korea over the North Korean landmine blast south of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL). The opposition had called on the ministry to send a letter to the UN Security Council about the blast and secure an apology from North Korea.
A Foreign Ministry official said on the 8th, “Regarding the landmine explosions in the DMZ, we are comprehensively reviewing the merits of pursuing various options while keeping all relevant factors in mind. We believe what matters is not whether a particular measure is implemented, but how effectively it can contribute to achieving our response objectives.”
The ministry said the options included ways to hold North Korea accountable for its latest landmine provocation.
The official said, “The investigation results into this incident are out, and the relevant departments will communicate closely about how we should respond, based on those findings.”
The Foreign Ministry said consultations through the National Security Council (NSC) would also continue. A ministry official said, “We will continue consultations through various consultative bodies, including the NSC.”
Foreign Minister Cho Hyun had previously said during a parliamentary audit by the National Assembly Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee on the 6th that, as one diplomatic response to the North Korean landmine incident in the DMZ, “we are also considering the option of not sending a letter to the UN Security Council.”
When People Power Party lawmaker Kim Geon asked, “Shouldn’t we send an official letter to the president of the UN Security Council in the name of our ambassador to the UN, as we did during the 2015 wooden-box mine provocation?”, Cho replied by laying out four options, including the possibility of taking no action.
Cho said, “If we take the matter to the Security Council, there could be a statement by the Security Council president; an even stronger resolution could be adopted; we could simply send a unilateral letter; or, considering the effectiveness, we could do nothing at all.”


[email protected] Kim Gyeong-su Reporter