Kim Yo-jong Inspects North Korea’s Border Fortification Work as Tensions Persist
Kim Yo-jong and senior military official Pak Jong-chon inspected fortification work along North Korea’s border with South Korea, with Pyongyang again rejecting allegations that its troops crossed the dividing line.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s sister Kim Yo-jong and senior military official Pak Jong-chon have inspected fortification work along the border with South Korea, state media reported Wednesday, as tensions remain elevated around the heavily armed frontier.
Pak, an adviser to North Korea’s Ministry of National Defense, visited key positions along the southern border Tuesday to review progress on the fortification project. The Korean Central News Agency said Kim Yo-jong, a department director of the ruling Workers’ Party’s Central Committee, also took part in the inspection.
During the visit, Pak rejected claims that North Korean troops had crossed the border, calling those allegations deliberate and premeditated. He said the North’s military knew the location of the boundary and was carrying out work within its own territory.
Pak instructed troops to turn the borderline into what he described as an impregnable fortress. He also told them to respond promptly and decisively if opposing forces threatened the safety of North Korean personnel working in the area.
Kim Yo-jong said her brother had ordered the border with what Pyongyang calls an enemy state to be fortified permanently. The language reflects North Korea’s increasingly hostile stance toward Seoul and its shift away from treating inter-Korean relations as a process aimed at eventual reconciliation.
North Korea began strengthening the inter-Korean border in April 2024. The work has included reinforcing barbed-wire fences, planting mines and building anti-tank barriers near the Military Demarcation Line, which divides the two Koreas inside the Demilitarized Zone. The campaign followed Kim Jong-un’s declaration that the two Koreas should be regarded as hostile states rather than partners pursuing reunification.
The latest inspection comes after mine explosions in the Demilitarized Zone last month injured three South Korean soldiers. Seoul has said the blasts were caused by mines planted by North Korea, while Pyongyang has denied responsibility.
The competing accounts have added to concerns about accidental clashes as North Korean troops continue construction near the dividing line. The border is tightly controlled, and movements close to the line can trigger warnings or other military responses. Pyongyang’s public emphasis on fortification suggests the project remains a central part of its security posture toward South Korea.