Lee calls for thorough probe of mine blast, vows necessary measures

President Lee Jae Myung has called for a thorough investigation into a mine blast inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that injured three South Korean soldiers. According to The Korea Times, Lee made the remark during a Cabinet meeting at Cheong Wa Dae.

The military had announced preliminary findings that the explosion was highly likely to have been caused by illegally planted North Korean mines. The opposition People Power Party had accused the government of delaying an inspection of the site due to concerns that President Lee's call for sanctions relief would be undermined if North Korea was found responsible.

Cheong Wa Dae rejected allegations that the timing of the military's inspection was tied to President Lee's remarks on sanctions relief for North Korea ahead of the U.N. General Assembly, according to Yonhap News and The Korea Times. A presidential official stated that the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the U.N. Command planned and decided on the timing of the inspection based purely on a military judgment.

Brief written by urgent.news from The Korea Times, The Korea Times, Yonhap News — 3 reports on this story. Machine-written — may contain errors; check the original before relying on it.