Overview

• South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said troops fired warning shots on Aug. 19 after North Korean soldiers briefly crossed the Military Demarcation Line, and the intruders withdrew without returning fire.
• North Korea, via KCNA, claimed more than 10 rounds from a 12.7 mm machine gun were fired at personnel working on a project to permanently seal the border and warned of unspecified countermeasures.
• Pyongyang said it notified U.S. forces in South Korea about its barrier work on June 25 and July 18 to prevent accidental clashes near the frontier.
• The encounter coincided with the Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, which North Korea denounced as extremely provocative, while Seoul and Washington describe the drills as defensive.
• South Korea did not issue an immediate public announcement of the shots as in past cases, and officials have used warning broadcasts before firing during North Korea’s ongoing barrier construction near the MDL.