Koreas, UN Command hold talks on demilitarizing JSA

Oct 17, 2018, 09:30 am

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Officials from the two Koreas and the UNC hold talks over disarming the Joint Security Area in the Demilitarized Zone in the truce village of Panmunjom on Tuesday./ Source: Seoul’s defense ministry

By AsiaToday reporter Lee Seok-jong

The two Koreas and the United Nations Command (UNC) held their first three-way talks on Tuesday to discuss demilitarizing the Joint Security Area (JSA) in the heavily fortified border between North and South Korea, following the September inter-Korean military agreement.

This means that the military officials of the two Koreas as well as the UNC, which has been in charge of enforcing the armistice agreement of the Korean Peninsula, took the first step to implement the military agreement that is aimed to declare a formal end to the Korean War.

As a result, the JSA, the symbol of division, is expected to turn into a place of peace and reconciliation.

The first three-way meeting to demilitarize the JSA took place at the Peace House on the southern side of Panmunjom from 10 a.m. through 1:15 p.m., Seoul’s defense ministry said.

The meeting was attended by three military officials from each side. The South Korean delegation was led by Army Col. Cho Yong-geun, and his North Korean counterpart was Army Col. Om Chang-nam. The UNC was represented by U.S. Army Col. Burke Hamilton, secretary of the UNC Military Armistice Commission.

“We have reviewed the implementation of the landmine removal operation at the JSA, which has been underway since October 1,” the defense ministry said. “We discussed practical matters regarding measures to be taken for disarmament, including the withdrawal of guard posts and firearms, reducing guard post personnel and readjusting surveillance equipment,” the ministry said.

“We have decided to proceed with plans for disarmament measures and mutual verification procedures through the trilateral consultation body,” the ministry said. “The Koreas and the UNC will continue to make efforts so that the measures to disarm the JSA specified in the September 19th military agreement are taken properly,” it added.

Some of the key issues of the meeting were the 20-day landmine clearance operation and the withdrawal of troops and firearms in the JSA.

According to military officials, no mines were found in the southern side of the JSA, but five were found in the northern part.

According to the September 19th military agreement, the two Koreas agreed to withdraw troops and firearms from the JSA within 5 days of the completion of the landmine removal. The two Koreas and the UNC will begin to take detailed measures for disarmament next week, such as withdrawing guard posts, sharing related information related to readjusting surveillance equipment, and mutually verifying disarmament measures.

In this process, the South and the North plan to withdraw four and five guard posts, respectively, from the JSA.

However, one of the North Korean guard posts near the “Bridge of No Return” and one of the South Korean guard posts near the “Foot Bridge” will remain unchanged.

#Koreas #UN Command #demilitarization #JSA #Joint Security Area