South Korea Reports North has Blown Up Border Roads Amid Drone Controversy

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Facts

• According to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, North Korea has blown up areas of an inter-Korean road north of the military demarcation line.^[1][2]
• This comes after South Korea's military said Monday that it's 'fully ready' to respond to reports that the North is deploying artillery troops to the border, allegedly a response to reports of South Korean drones dropping propaganda leaflets over the border.^[3]
• A South Korean military spokesperson had said the North 'installed screens on the road' and had been working behind them, 'preparing to blow up the roads' near the border between the two countries.^[4]
• Pyongyang, who on Friday reportedly warned Seoul to stop sending unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) into the North, was also quoted as ordering the 'transfer [of] eight artillery brigades fully armed to the wartime readiness level to a firing standby by 8 p.m. on Sunday.'^[5]
• The North Korean Army last Wednesday announced plans to 'completely separate' the two sides by blowing up roads on the border, which connect the South's western border city of Paju to the North's Kaesong, and the Donghae line along the east coast.^[6]
• While this year has seen an expansion of both North Korean weapons tests and joint South Korean-US military drills, Seoul has said it believes the North's fortification efforts are aimed at deterring defectors, rather than preparing for war.^[4]

Sources: ^[1]NBC, ^[2]Guardian, ^[3]Al Jazeera, ^[4]Sky News, ^[5]TASS and ^[6]Yonhap News Agency.

Narratives

• Pro-North Korea narrative, as provided by KCNA Watch. Pyongyang has every right to assert control over its sovereign territory. Not only is the South dropping propaganda leaflets into enemy territory, but it's doing so by flying drones all the way into North Korea's capital city. This is clearly a national security threat that must be dealt with by the North Korean defense forces.
• Anti-North Korea Narrative, as provided by RBC. Pyongyang is throwing a fit over leaflets that contain anti-Kim Jong Un messages. Besides the fact that these are just words, the only evidence of drones has been a single black-and-white photo of a winged object in the sky. South Korea has dealt with incoming North Korean drones for years, so for Kim to threaten bombs over this is uncalled for.

Predictions