A file picture shows North Korean border guards marching in the truce village of Panmunjom. [Joint Press Corps]
A North Korean soldier has defected to South Korea after walking across the heavily armed land border amid high tensions caused by Pyongyang's continued missile and nuclear tests, military authorities said.
The soldier crossed into South Korea at around 7:50 pm (1050 GMT) Tuesday through the demilitarized zone (DMZ) which split the Korean peninsula following the 1950-53 Korean War, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The defection did not cause any cross-border gun fight between South and North Korean soldiers. The South's unification ministry said Wednesday that details would be disclosed when security authorities complete an investigation.
There have been occasional defections through the DMZ dotted with land mines, electric fences, concrete walls and the heavy presence of border guards. The last defection through the zone was reported on September 29 last year. Despite tight border control and surveillance, more North Koreans are seeking to escape their hometowns in the North.
Lim Chang-won = cwlim34@ajunews.com
reporter
Park Sae-jin
swatchsjp@ajunews.com
