South Korea's top military officer and Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of the United Nations Command, visited the eastern section of the inter-Korean border Wednesday, amid repeated crossings by North Korean troops.
Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Jin Yong-sung and Brunson visited frontline Guard Posts and a General Outpost along the eastern front to inspect operations in the Demilitarized Zone and review military readiness, according to the JCS.
Brunson concurrently serves as commander of the South Korea-US Combined Forces Command and US Forces Korea.
The units they visited are responsible for guarding areas where North Korean troops have repeatedly crossed the MDL in recent weeks.
North Korean soldiers have crossed the line more than 20 times over the past month, with most of the incidents occurring along the eastern front, according to the military. South Korean forces have repeatedly issued warnings and fired warning shots in response.
At a frontline GP, Jin and Brunson reviewed North Korean troop activities near the MDL and inspected the unit's readiness to respond to possible contingencies, the JCS said.
During the visit, Brunson stressed the importance of maintaining a strong readiness posture to uphold stability under the 1953 Armistice Agreement.
"The Armistice Agreement has maintained stability on the Korean Peninsula for more than 70 years, and firm readiness must underpin efforts to sustain that stability," Brunson said.
"Our presence here together today demonstrates the strength of the South Korea-US alliance and our shared commitment to defending the Republic of Korea and safeguarding peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula."
The visit comes after Seoul and the UNC publicly differed in June over North Korean construction activities near the MDL.
At the time, South Korea's military described North Korea's installation of fences and other obstacles close to the MDL as a "clear violation" of the Armistice Agreement. The UNC, however, said such construction and defensive fortification did not automatically constitute a violation as long as the work remained north of the MDL and did not involve heavy weapons.
South Korea's military has also asked the UNC to investigate North Korean crossings of the MDL as possible violations of the Armistice Agreement.
Separately, Jin also visited a GOP battalion to inspect its surveillance systems and overall readiness, following recent revelations that some frontline units had conducted guard operations without ammunition loaded into their firearms.
He ordered troops to reinforce operational discipline and maintain readiness to respond immediately to any North Korean provocation.
flylikekite@heraldcorp.com
