In this image released by the Joint Chiefs of Staff in March 2025, North Korean troops are seen conducting excavation and quarrying work on the eastern front, captured by South Korean military surveillance equipment. (Joint Chiefs of Staff)
In this image released by the Joint Chiefs of Staff in March 2025, North Korean troops are seen conducting excavation and quarrying work on the eastern front, captured by South Korean military surveillance equipment. (Joint Chiefs of Staff)

North Korean troops have not crossed the Military Demarcation Line this year, according to military sources Tuesday, in what appears to reflect the near completion of North Korea’s frontline clearing work near the inter-Korean border.

The shift marks a sharp contrast from last year, when North Korean troops violated the MDL 17 times. But military sources said the absence of crossings does not necessarily suggest reduced tensions, but rather a change in the phase of North Korea’s work to turn the area into a de facto border zone.

Since April 2024, North Korea has mobilized troops near the MDL to clear dense vegetation, flatten land, build tactical roads, install barbed-wire fences and lay mines. The work followed North Korean leader Kim Jong-un’s declaration in late 2023 that the two Koreas are “two hostile states.”

South Korean military officials had expected possible MDL violations to continue this year after the winter thaw, as North Korean troops were expected to resume outdoor work near the border in earnest.

However, sources said North Korea had largely completed key clearing work by late last year, reducing the need for troops to approach the MDL directly.

Military sources said the earlier phase of the work focused on removing vegetation and leveling ground in heavily wooded parts of the Demilitarized Zone, where the MDL is difficult to identify due to complex terrain and missing border markers.

Most of last year’s MDL violations occurred in areas where clearing was underway, including parts of Goseong, Hwacheon and Cheorwon in Gangwon Province and Yeoncheon in Gyeonggi Province, the sources said.

The troops who crossed the line were mostly workers carrying tools such as pickaxes. They withdrew after South Korea issued warning broadcasts and fired warning shots in accordance with rules of engagement.

North Korea is now believed to be focusing on laying tactical roads and installing fences in cleared areas, with an average of 3,000 to 5,000 personnel mobilized daily, similar to the level seen in the second half of last year.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff said South Korea’s military is closely monitoring North Korean activity near the MDL and maintaining a firm readiness posture.


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