A North Korean guard post is seen from Imjingak Park on the South Korean side of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, July 20, 2023. Korea Times photo by Choi Won-suk

The previous Moon Jae-in government is facing accusations of lax monitoring regarding the 2018 demolition of North Korean guard posts, after the current defense minister suggested that North Korea may not have fully destroyed its guard posts as stipulated in the inter-Korean military tension reduction pact.

As per the Sept. 19 military agreement, also known as the Comprehensive Military Agreement (CMA), signed in 2018 by then-President Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, both Koreas demolished 10 out of 11 guard posts in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), respectively, as part of measures to prevent military clashes near the border.

The demolition process took place in November 2018 and was verified by mutual parties in December of that year.

However, controversy has arisen following incumbent Defense Minister Shin Won-shik's recent remarks speculating that North Korea might not have completely demolished the guard posts back then.

"It seems that North Korea has only destroyed the guard posts visible aboveground, leaving the rest of the underground facilities untouched. It appears that the guard posts can be easily repaired and accessed once the repairs are made," he was quoted as saying during an interview with Yonhap News Agency, Jan. 10.

Shin mentioned that North Korea appears to have preserved the underground facilities, given the swift deployment of soldiers and equipment shortly after restoring the aboveground facilities recently amid heightened inter-Korean tension.

Following the nullification of the Sept. 19 agreement, the Kim regime vowed to resume military activities near the border and began restoring the dismantled guard posts in late November, according to the South Korean military.

Surveillance photos taken by cameras and thermal optical devices in the DMZ captured images of armed North Korean soldiers repairing the facilities.

North Korean soldiers are spotted near a guard post inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas in this photo provided by South Korea's defense ministry, Nov. 27, 2023. Courtesy of Ministry of National Defense

Suspicions that the North has maintained its underground guard post facilities have led to speculations that the previous Moon administration, which pursued peaceful ties with Pyongyang, may not have monitored the demolition adequately at that time.

On Monday, the conservative newspaper Chosun Ilbo reported that the Moon administration's announcement of the demolition of the North's guard posts lacked verification processes for crucial underground facilities.

"During the on-site verification process at that time, it appears that our military did not properly confirm whether the underground facilities of the North Korean guard posts were actually destroyed," the newspaper wrote, citing multiple soldiers who participated in the verification procedures.

The report speculated that back then, South Korean military officials concluded that North Korea had effectively destroyed the underground facilities based on visual observation and North Korea's claims, instead of technical assessments.

This contradicts the military's earlier announcement in 2018.

"Both parties confirmed faithful adherence to the trial withdrawal of guard posts as stipulated in the Sept. 19 military agreement," Suh Wook, then chief director of operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), had said during a briefing in December 2018.

The JCS said a verification team comprised of 77 personnel confirmed the withdrawal of firearms, military equipment and personnel from the guard posts, as well as demolition of both aboveground and underground facilities, which include connective tunnels and entrance barricades.

The defense ministry said Monday that it is looking into the issue.

"We are currently verifying the facts related to the issue," ministry spokesperson Jeon Ha-kyu said during a briefing.

In response to an inquiry on the basis by which the Moon administration had announced the demolition of the North's guard posts, Jeon replied, "We would need to look into the data from that time. It is difficult to provide an exact definition (of demolition) right now."