An American serviceman crossed the border with North Korea “without authorization” during a visit to the demilitarized zone (DMZ), which separates it from its southern neighbor, and was apparently placed under arrest, announced Tuesday, July 18 the United Nations (UN).
“An American serviceman, during a visit, voluntarily and without authorization” crossed the demarcation line, said Colonel Isaac Taylor, the spokesman for American forces in South Korea. The man was on a visit to the “Common Security Zone,” the area of ??the DMZ under UN control, the UN command post said. “We believe he is currently in custody in the DPRK [Democratic People’s Republic of Korea] and we are working with our APC [Korean People’s Army] counterparts to resolve this incident,” it said. specified from the same source.
“We are closely monitoring the situation and investigating,” US Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin told reporters.
Hundreds of tourists travel every day on organized tours inside the “Common Security Zone,” located inside the DMZ that has separated the two Koreas for nearly seventy years. The Korean War (1950-1953) having ended in an armistice, and not by a peace agreement, the two neighbors are still, technically, in a state of war.
Relations between the two Koreas at an all-time low
North Korea closed its borders at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020 and has yet to reopen them. The security presence on its side of the border up to the “Common Security Area” has also been significantly reduced.
But, under armistice protocols, no South Korean or American personnel can cross the border to pick up the American national.
The incident comes at a time when relations between the two Koreas are at their worst: diplomacy is at a standstill and Kim Jong-un calls for further development of armaments in his country, including tactical nuclear weapons.
South Korea and the United States have increased military cooperation in response to missile tests and held joint maneuvers with latest-generation fighter jets and strategic forces. These annual exercises must be repeated in August.
