▲ North Korean leader Kim Jong-un inspects the training base of the special operations unit of the Korean People's Army in the western district (Source: Financial News)

North Korea has defined the Republic of Korea as a constitutional adversary. The North revised the Constitution at the Supreme People's Assembly from July 7-8, but did not disclose the details of the revision at the time. However, as they reported later through North Korean Central News Agency that they had destroyed significant infrastructure, including roads and railways linking the Gyeongui and East Sea lines, to fortify the border area. The agency announced that this action was in line with the demands of the Republic Constitution, which designates the Republic of Korea as a thoroughly hostile country, and that it was a legitimate measure for the changing security environment. In fact, the North removed the expression of “reunification” between the two Koreas and declared territorial separation between the two countries.

The destroyed Gyeongui Line and the East Sea Line were started in 2002 after the late President Kim Dae-jung and North Korean leader Kim Jong-il held their first inter-Korean summit in 2000 and agreed to connect railways and roads. The inter-Korean connection road on the East Sea Line, is currently undergoing a process of fortification as the debris has been cleaned up and the structure has been installed in earnest. The government expects North Korea to install the skeleton frame of the structure and then install concrete to build a barrier.

In addition, North Korea signed a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty with Russia in June. The treaty includes a clause on military intervention that says, that they both provide assistance by any means available if the other party is attacked by an enemy. This is attributed to President Yoon Suk-yeol's aggressive North Korea policy, including the resumption of South Korea-U.S. joint exercises since his inauguration. Furthermore, NATO announced on October 23 that North Korea had invaded Ukraine and sent special forces to the war-torn Russian-Ukrainian border, which increased international tensions over inter-Korean relation. The National Intelligence Service (NIS) said that more than 1,500 troops from the Special Forces "Storm Corps" were transferred through Russian Navy carriers to the North Korean military's dispatch, and up to 10,000 additional troops will be sent to Russia in the future. As a result, it is more likely that Russia will help North Korea to participate in a war in case of an emergency on the Korean Peninsula. It is the first time since the 1990s that a Russian naval fleet has recently entered North Korean waters.

Tensions between the two Koreas are having a direct impact on the nation. A case in point is filth balloons that have been continuously flown in since late last year. The balloons were deployed across South Korea 30 times, and this time they flew over the presidential office in Yongsan and exploded. The balloons contained flyers criticizing President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Gun-hee instead of garbage. It is the first time that the North has sent leaflets instead of garbage. As time goes by, the accuracy of balloons sent from North Korea is getting more precise, raising concerns over the situation. Some balloons flew from the Seoul metropolitan area to Chungcheong and North Gyeongsang provinces and fell onto vehicles and caused damage to civilians. By early October, the police had received 860 reports related to the balloons.

South Korea's diplomacy is bound to face a new phase, due to the geographic and military proximity between North Korea and Russia, and the now escalating conflict between the two Koreas. Referring directly to North Korea's dispatch of troops to Russia on the 24th of last month, President Yoon Suk-yeol said, "We had the principle of not directly supplying weapons to kill (Ukraine), and we can consider that more flexibly depending on the North Korean military's activities." In addition, he stressed that, "North Korea's dispatch of troops to Russia, which directly violates the UN Charter and UN Security Council resolutions, is a provocation that threatens the security of the Korean Peninsula and around the world, beyond Europe."

Relations between the two Koreas are deteriorating day by day amid the ongoing international situation in Ukraine, Russia, and the Middle East. Inter-Korean relations are expected to develop a flexible situation as the international situation changes as well as North Korea's attitude in the future. The South Korean government should seek a flexible diplomatic strategy that suppresses North Korea's armed provocations and leave all possibilities open for peace on the Korean Peninsula.

By Kim So-ha, reporter  lucky.river16@gmail.com

<저작권자 © The Campus Journal, 무단 전재 및 재배포 금지>