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SEOUL, Oct. 2 (Yonhap) -- Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, on Friday again rejected blame for the recent mine blast inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and derided Seoul's call to reduce tensions.
In a statement carried by the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), she repeated her earlier denial this week, rejecting the South Korean military's findings that blamed the North for the blast, which wounded three South Korean soldiers.
South Korea's military urged Pyongyang to offer an apology and stop fortification work on the border.
"Explaining in a simple and clear way, this is aimed at shutting down the door forever so that we will have nothing to do with the ROK and even wild animals cannot come and go," she said. ROK stands for the Republic of Korea, South Korea's official name.
North Korea wants to "cut off the relationship forever" with the South, she added.
President Lee Jae Myung vowed Thursday to keep pressing for practical ways to ease military tensions with North Korea, even as the two Koreas remain at odds over the blast.
"My administration will consistently pursue practical measures to reduce military tensions between the two Koreas," Lee said at a ceremony marking the 78th Armed Forces Day.
"For the sake of peace on the Korean Peninsula, the two Koreas must find a way to win together and build trust," he said.
She, however, derided President Lee's remarks as "the climax of the farce that everyone should watch."
"Those who wrote the playbook for the farce, directed it and played the actors deserve the precious 'citation,'" Kim said.
This file photo shows Kim Yo-jong, the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un. (Yonhap)
jaeyeon.woo@yna.co.kr
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