Kim Yo-jong warns of border tensions, weighs renewed broadcasts

Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, said Monday that North Korea is considering additional tactical strike deployments and renewed loudspeaker broadcasts along the inter-Korean border, according to The Korea Times. She described conditions at the border as highly unstable and accused South Korea's military of escalating tensions.

The warning follows a land mine explosion last month that severely injured two South Korean soldiers and prompted conflicting accounts of responsibility. A return to loudspeaker broadcasts would also reverse a halt that both sides put in place last year, according to The Korea Times.

Kim outlined the possible steps in an English-language statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency, The Korea Times reported. She accused South Korea's military of threatening North Korean soldiers and border security.

According to the newspaper, Seoul concluded that mines deliberately planted by North Korea caused last month's explosion. North Korea has repeatedly denied responsibility for the blast.

Kim claimed that South Korea conducted 2,870 rounds of loudspeaker broadcasts and fired 201 warning shots from Aug. 1 to Oct. 17. Those figures were allegations in her statement, as reported by The Korea Times.

The newspaper reported that both sides stopped border broadcasts last year after Seoul suspended its broadcasts as part of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's efforts to rebuild inter-Korean trust.

Kim described the deployments and broadcasts as measures under consideration, rather than announcing that they had begun, according to The Korea Times.