South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said on Tuesday that soldiers fired warning shots to repel North Korean soldiers who violated the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) by about 20 meters. Around 20-30 North Korean soldiers, while engaging in unspecified construction work on the northern side of the border, crossed the Demilitarised Zone dividing the two Koreas.

After the shots were fired, the military did not notice further suspicious activity and the North Korean troops did not return fire. An official of the JCS explained that among the invading North Korean troops there were some armed troops on alert, but they were not looking at the South Korean soldiers, only their working forces.

According to the JCS official, the reason for the border violation is due to North Korea’s work on the frontline that has been occurring since April. Furthermore, the JCS said the North Korean military has been conducting various activities along the frontline to improve border control and prevent North Koreans from defecting to the South. These activities include laying landmines, reinforcing tactical roads and installing structures such as anti-tank barriers. The official of the JCS said that the South Korean military will need to clarify what they are going to do if there is a repeated violation of the MDL by North Korean troops.

Recently, tensions between the two nations have been particularly heightened following loudspeaker propaganda being broadcast over the border from South Korea. This was in response to the thousands of trash balloons that North Korea had sent to South Korea. This itself was a retaliation for the anti-North Korea leaflets that had been sent over the border from North Korean defectors in South Korea.