SEOUL, November 10, 2026 — North Korea has accused United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres of taking South Korea’s side in a dispute over a landmine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone, criticising his call for the two countries to resume dialogue and reduce the risk of further border incidents.
Kim Yo Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, described Guterres’s position as prejudiced and irresponsible in a statement carried by North Korean state media. She argued that the UN chief had repeated Seoul’s account of the September blast without properly understanding the facts.
The United Nations has said Guterres encouraged the two Koreas to restart dialogue, including military-level discussions, as a way to prevent unintended incidents along one of the world’s most heavily fortified borders. A spokesperson said the secretary-general’s appeal was aimed at reducing tensions rather than assigning responsibility for the explosion.
The blast seriously wounded several South Korean soldiers who were conducting a reconnaissance mission in the DMZ. Seoul has said North Korean mines caused the explosion, while Pyongyang has denied responsibility. North Korea says its troops were carrying out border-fortification work and did not violate the armistice or international law.
The competing accounts have made the incident another flashpoint in relations between the two Koreas. The DMZ is governed by a longstanding armistice arrangement dating from the Korean War, and military activity near the boundary carries the risk of miscalculation even when neither side says it intends to escalate.
North Korea’s criticism of Guterres also reflects its longstanding suspicion of international institutions and its objection to statements that it believes give diplomatic weight to South Korean claims. Seoul, meanwhile, has sought to maintain pressure on Pyongyang while leaving room for dialogue to prevent a local border incident from developing into a wider confrontation.
The dispute remains unresolved, and the latest statement from Kim Yo Jong does not indicate that North Korea is prepared to accept the UN chief’s proposal. The immediate challenge for both governments is to prevent further incidents and establish communication channels that can be used quickly if troops encounter one another near the border.
With the cause of the mine blast still contested by the two governments, the UN’s call for dialogue is likely to remain diplomatically sensitive. Any renewed military-level contact would require both sides to agree on a format and terms, something that has proved difficult amid years of strained relations.
What is at stake: The disagreement is not only about the disputed mine blast. It also concerns whether the United Nations can help restore basic communication between two governments that have sharply reduced official contact. Guterres’s proposal for dialogue is a conflict-prevention measure; Pyongyang’s response shows how quickly even a call for de-escalation can be interpreted as taking sides when the underlying facts remain contested.
South Korea’s military and the United Nations Command have said their investigation found that North Korean mines caused the September explosion south of the Military Demarcation Line. North Korea rejects that conclusion. The gap between the two accounts makes independent monitoring and military communication especially important, because a new incident near the boundary could trigger a response before either side has established what happened.
Yonhap: North Korea rejects the UN chief’s call for inter-Korean dialogue
Reuters: Pyongyang criticises Guterres over the border dispute