Apologise, or anti-North Korea propaganda will continue, South Korea tells Pyongyang as the situation remains tense despite talks between the two sides.
ADVERTISEMENTTough-talking South Korean President Park Guen-hye has demanded an apology from North Korea for recent landmine explosions in the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ) separating the two states.
Pyongyang denies responsibility for the incident, which wounded two South Korean soldiers.
In response to the blasts, Seoul began broadcasting anti-North Korea propaganda across the DMZ – a practice both sides had abandoned 11 years ago.
“We need a clear apology and measures to prevent a recurrence of these provocations and this tense situation. Otherwise, this government will take the appropriate steps and continue its loudspeaker broadcasts,” said the South Korean president.
On Thursday (August 20) an exchange of artillery fire over the DMZ saw Pyongyang issue its neighbour with an ultimatum: stop broadcasting by Saturday or face military action.
Although Seoul refused, top officials from the two states agreed to meet in the Panmunjom truce village in the DMZ. Marathon talks ensued, which were still in progress when Park Geun-hye issued its demand for an apology.
State-run television in Pyongyang has released its own propaganda, purporting to show North Korea’s citizens readying for a fight.