PPP accuses government of deliberately delaying DMZ probe, calls for parliamentary investigation

The People Power Party on Monday trained its fire on President Lee Jae Myung over a suspected landmine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone, accusing the government of "deliberately delaying" the investigation. The party raised allegations of a cover-up and called for National Assembly hearings and a parliamentary investigation, sharply escalating its offensive.

PPP leader Jang Dong-hyeok, speaking at a supreme council meeting at the National Assembly, said media reports had emerged that a soldier present at the explosion site had witnessed what appeared to be a North Korean box mine. "The defense minister used the soldiers' trauma as an excuse, but frontline units had actually said a swift investigation was needed — and that fact was concealed while the probe was delayed," Jang said.

He added that North Korean troops had already been detected crossing the Military Demarcation Line and altering conditions on the ground as early as June. "The alteration of conditions is itself an act of aggression, and the president would have been briefed on it — yet not a single word of protest was raised with North Korea," he said.

Jang also raised allegations of a cover-up in the investigation that followed the incident. "They are burying the truth to conceal the president's failures. They have been busy downplaying and hiding everything — from the number of explosions to the number of injured soldiers," he said. "A site inspection only began six days after the accident. In the meantime, North Korean troops could have crossed over again and destroyed evidence, and rain during the holiday period may have washed it away. Who will be held accountable if North Korea's responsibility cannot be proven?"

He went on to say that the deliberate delay of the investigation, the downplaying of the incident and the cover-up were all impossible without the president's orders. "If he ordered the cover-up, that is grounds for impeachment," Jang said.

Jang also took issue with President Lee's decision to proceed with a visit to the United States after the incident. "North Korean troops crossed the MDL on the very day of the explosion, and a North Korean fighter jet crossed over, forcing a vessel to evacuate," he said. "Under those circumstances, the right call was to cut the trip short and return home immediately."

PPP floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik also raised questions about the military's handling of the investigation and called for the National Assembly to uncover the truth. "The military's conduct over the past several days has been utterly unacceptable," Jeong said at the meeting. "Even though North Korea's involvement is clear, Defense Minister Kang Shin-cheol said it was impossible to tell whether the mine was ours or North Korea's."

Jeong said there were also allegations that the military had refused a request from the United Nations Command to share data on the day of the incident, and that a reference to a "presumed North Korean mine" in the initial report had been arbitrarily deleted. "What the military has shown is closer to a burial than an investigation. This must be brought to light through National Assembly hearings and a parliamentary investigation," he said.

Jeong drew a comparison with a landmine incident that occurred in 2015. "Even under Park Geun-hye in 2015, when a mine exploded in the 1st Division, the military collected mine fragments on the same day and determined it was North Korea's doing within six days," he said. "The reason the military has deteriorated compared to 10 years ago is the left-wing government's policy of submission toward North Korea."

Jeong continued his criticism of President Lee's North Korea policy. "Even in this situation, President Lee Jae Myung has argued for trading the lifting of sanctions against North Korea for a nuclear freeze," he said. "What leverage does North Korea have over him that he would voluntarily offer tribute? It is hard to tell whether he is the president of South Korea or North Korea's court-appointed defense attorney."