North Korean Soldier Defects to South Korea Across Heavily Guarded Border

South Korea has detained a North Korean soldier who crossed the heavily fortified border separating the two countries, its military said on Sunday.

According to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), the soldier crossed the Military Demarcation Line (MDL), the boundary running through the heart of the Korean Peninsula, and was “tracked and monitored” before being taken into custody.

“The soldier was secured safely,” the JCS said in a statement, adding that an investigation was underway to determine the circumstances of the crossing.

South Korean media outlets described the event as a likely “defection.” The Chosun Ilbo reported that the soldier expressed a desire to defect after being approached by a South Korean sentry near the central section of the border.

If confirmed, the soldier would be among tens of thousands of North Koreans who have fled the North’s isolation and economic hardship since the 1950s. Last year, 236 North Koreans arrived in the South, with women comprising nearly 90 percent of arrivals.

Defections directly across the inter-Korean border are rare and perilous. The zone is laced with landmines and tightly monitored by troops on both sides. Most defectors instead flee through China before traveling onward to South Korea through third countries.

The last known defection by a North Korean soldier took place in August last year.

Hong Min, a senior analyst at the Korea Institute for National Unification, told AFP that the soldier likely managed to cross due to familiarity with the terrain.

“The latest crossing will not be received positively by Pyongyang, as he could provide the South with information on its troop movements and operations in the border area,” he said.

The crossing follows months of political turbulence in Seoul. Liberal President Lee Jae-myung, who took office four months ago, has pledged a more conciliatory approach toward Pyongyang than his conservative predecessor, former President Yoon Suk-yeol, who briefly attempted to impose martial law late last year.

Lee has promised to “open a communication channel with North Korea and establish peace on the Korean Peninsula through talks and cooperation.”