North Korea has laid about 960,000 land mines in and around the Demilitarized Zone over the past two years or so, approaching half of the total estimated number of mines buried in the DMZ.
The military authorities reported to the National Assembly that mines laid by North Korea in the DMZ area since 2024 are estimated to total 960,000, according to the offices of lawmakers on the National Assembly's Intelligence Committee and National Defense Committee on the 23rd.
Military experts estimate the total number of mines inside the DMZ at about 2 million, including those laid by South Korean forces. Unification Minister Chung Dong-young also said at a parliamentary audit on the 7th that mines in the DMZ number about 2 million.
The large-scale mine-laying is seen as part of North Korea's border fortification work, pursued after it defined inter-Korean relations as those of "two hostile states." Since April 2024, North Korea has been laying mines, building barriers, installing barbed wire and constructing tactical roads along the Military Demarcation Line.
Military tension is also rising as North Korean troops have repeatedly crossed the MDL during the work. On the 21st of last month, a mine believed to have been laid by North Korean troops exploded south of the MDL, wounding a South Korean soldier.
South Korea's military has responded to the MDL crossings with warning broadcasts and warning shots. North Korea has objected, saying the South Korean measures threaten the safety of its troops, and has signaled further steps, including resuming loudspeaker broadcasts toward the South.