N. Korea continues to install mines inside DMZ – agency

North Korea has continued to install land mines and barriers within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas despite recent heavy downpours and mine explosions, Yonhap News Agency reported Thursday, citing Seoul's Defense Ministry. The North has deployed large numbers of troops in front-line areas to plant mines and erect walls presumed to be anti-tank barriers since April, according to the report. Such activities within the DMZ have continued to be detected even after mine explosions and as seasonal rains recently battered the North, the ministry said in a policy report to the National Assembly. The ministry also said North Korea is preparing for an additional military spy satellite launch following its failed attempt in May, when its satellite-carrying rocket exploded soon after liftoff. Pyongyang has vowed to launch three spy satellites into orbit this year after successfully launching the Malligyong-1 reconnaissance satellite last year. Meanwhile, the report said North Korea has launched 37 ballistic missiles on eight occasions this year, while firing 11 cruise missiles on six instances. "North Korea is continuously advancing its nuclear and missile capabilities despite opposition from the international community," Defense Minister Shin Won-sik said in a parliamentary session of the National Defense Committee. "(It) is seriously threatening peace and stability not only on the Korean Peninsula and in the Indo-Pacific region but also Europe and the entire world," said Shin. To bolster defense readiness, South Korea has expanded combined exercises with the US, the ministry said, staging 10 large-scale combined drills in the first half of this year; double the figure over the same period the previous year. Source : Kuwait News Agency