S. Korea partially suspends inter-Korean agreement

Nov 23, 2023, 08:17 am

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President Yoon Suk-yeol presides over a National Security Council meeting from a hotel in London during his state visit to London on Nov. 21, 2023./ Source: Presidential Office

AsiaToday reporter Hong Sun-mi

The South Korean government resumed reconnaissance and surveillance activities against the North Korean provocations around the inter-Korean border on Wednesday at 3 p.m.

The move is a partial suspension of the Comprehensive Military Agreement (CMA) in response to North Korea’s unexpected launch of a military satellite into orbit which took place on Tuesday at 10:50 p.m.

President Yoon Suk-yeol remotely approved a Cabinet resolution suspending some of the provisions of the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement, according to the presidential office. The president led an emergency National Security Council (NSC) meeting from London, where he is currently on a four-day state visit, immediately after North Korea launched a military spy satellite. Yoon said that regardless of its success or failure, North Korea’s launch was aimed at strengthening its reconnaissance and surveillance capabilities against South Korea and enhancing its intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) performance. He instructed the government to take response measures in accordance with the law, as discussed at the NSC meeting.

In response, Prime Minister Han Duk-soo presided over an extraordinary Cabinet meeting, where a resolution to suspend part of the effectiveness of the CMA was approved. Yoon electronically approved the motion immediately.

Under the CMA, signed between the two Koreas on Sept. 19, 2018, both countries agreed to completely cease all hostile acts against each other in the air, land, and sea domains, setting up buffer zones.

However, it has been pointed out the deal is far more disadvantageous to South Korea since it has superior surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities to the North, and the need to suspend the inter-Korean military agreement has been steadily raised mainly by the military due to North Korea’s violation of the agreement multiple times. With the latest suspension of the no-fly zone clause, the South Korean military is expected to normalize its reconnaissance capabilities near the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) separating the two Koreas, also known as the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

Prime Minister Han stressed in his opening statement at the extraordinary Cabinet meeting that the measures are the essential and the minimum defensive steps needed to protect the country.

#inter-Korean agreement #Comprehensive Military Agreement #suspension