The ruling and opposition parties clashed over how forcefully the government should respond to a landmine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone and over who bears responsibility. The Democratic Party of Korea condemned North Korea for violating the armistice agreement and called for countermeasures, while arguing that scrutiny should begin with how the Yoon Suk-yeol government responded when the North started turning the military demarcation line into a border. The People Power Party said the current government is downplaying North Korea's responsibility and demanded immediate action.
Kim Min-seok, leader of the Democratic Party, called for a military response at a supreme council meeting on the 30th, saying, "We condemn North Korea's violation of the armistice agreement." Addressing a statement by Kim Yo-jong, director of the general affairs department of North Korea's Workers' Party, he said, "We further criticize and condemn the attitude of the North Korean authorities, who deny this and call it a fabrication," adding, "They must apologize and correct this." Analysts said his message toward the North grew markedly sharper than the previous day after the blast was officially confirmed to have been caused by a mine laid by North Korea.
The Democratic Party also raised the question of the Yoon government's responsibility. Its argument is that because North Korea began work in earnest to turn the military demarcation line into a border in 2024, the review should start with whether the government's response at the time was adequate. Democratic Party members of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee held a news conference the same day, saying, "The Yoon Suk-yeol government responded then with nothing more than warning shots," and criticizing that it "did not assess where mines had been laid and did not put protective measures in place for troops."
Some within the Democratic Party said further verification was needed on whether North Korea acted deliberately. Jin Sung-joon, chairman of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee, called the incident "a violation of the armistice agreement and, viewed broadly, a military provocation," while adding, "If further investigation establishes that North Korea acted deliberately and targeted our troops, the level of response will have to be raised further." Asked about the possibility that the North laid the mines for defensive purposes, he said it was possible.
The People Power Party sharpened its attacks, saying the government is downplaying North Korea's responsibility. Park Choong-kwon, the party's chief spokesperson, said in a statement, "The military authorities say the likelihood of a North Korean mine is very high, yet describe deliberate intent as 'limited,' which looks like an attempt to reduce North Korea's responsibility." He added, "As if on cue, Kim Yo-jong branded it a 'fabrication' in her statement, the height of turning the blame on others."
Kwon Young-se of the People Power Party criticized the government for not moving quickly to investigate after the incident. Speaking on KBS Radio, Kwon said, "After the incident there was the president's address to the U.N. General Assembly, and that speech went in exactly the opposite direction from this incident." He added, "This called for an immediate investigation, and it is unthinkable that it was put off for days. A National Security Council meeting absolutely should have been convened."
Na Kyung-won of the same party wrote on Facebook, "Open the back door for the thief and make excuses on his behalf, and he barges into the inner room and shouts you down." She urged the government to "fully resume loudspeaker broadcasts and leaflet campaigns toward the North, and resume decapitation drills targeting Kim Jong-un as well."
Han Dong-hoon, an independent lawmaker, also criticized Jin's remarks about the possibility of defensive mines, retorting, "If North Korean mines were not aimed at South Korean troops, were they aimed at water deer?"
