Second North Korean Soldier in Two Months Defects to South Korea

A second North Korean soldier in as many months defected across the heavily fortified land border separating the two Koreas, according to South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.

The low-ranking soldier crossed without incident at around 8 a.m. Thursday. Last month, another soldier was shot as he crossed near the Joint Security Area -- the only part of the demilitarized zone where forces from both countries stand face-to-face.

That defection was only the third across the heavily guarded JSA since 1998. Escapes like Thursday’s across a less sensitive area of the border are more common. Four soldiers have defected south this year.

United Nations Command said that North Korea breached the inter-Korean armistice agreement when its border guards fired across the military demarcation line at the previous defector. He is now recovering in a South Korean hospital.

North Korea and South Korea are technically still at war, with Kim Jong Un’s regime saying a 1953 armistice agreement is invalid. President Donald Trump has threatened military action to prevent Kim from obtaining the ability to strike the continental U.S. with a nuclear weapon.