US, South Korean commanders inspect DMZ amid uptick in North Korean activity

U.S. and South Korean service members in combat helmets and camouflage uniforms confer at a military observation post.

U.S. Army Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, visits a Demilitarized Zone guard post with Gen. Jin Yong-sung, chairman of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff, Sept. 9, 2026. (Daniela Lechuga/ U.S. Army)

By JULIE MASSON and YOOJIN LEE
STARS AND STRIPES

Published September 10, 2026 ·

Top U.S. and South Korean commanders inspected frontline positions within the Demilitarized Zone this week amid increased North Korean construction and repeated crossings of the heavily fortified border.

Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, and Gen. Jin Yong-sung, chairman of the South’s Joint Chiefs of Staff, visited the eastern border Wednesday and examined North Korean construction near the Military Demarcation Line, according to a Joint Staff press release.

The line divides the two Koreas within the DMZ, a buffer zone established after the 1950-53 Korean War ended with an armistice instead of a peace treaty.

The agreement has maintained stability on the Korean Peninsula for the past 70 years, but firm readiness is necessary to preserve it, Brunson said in the release.

The visit follows several recent demarcation-line crossings by North Korean troops. South Korean forces fired warning shots last month after North Korean soldiers crossed the border in the DMZ’s eastern sector, according to the South’s Ministry of National Defense.

The incident marked the first warning shots fired in response to a crossing since an incursion last year, the Yonhap News Agency reported Aug. 16. North Korean troops crossed the line 17 times last year, the report said.

Jin expressed concern Wednesday about North Korean military activity near the border and ordered troops to “thoroughly analyze even the smallest indications” to guard against surprise attacks, according to the Joint Staff release.

Frequent fog and dense vegetation can complicate security operations in the area, Jin said. He ordered troops to respond firmly to any North Korean provocations and to stop them “on the spot.”

North Korea has also been fortifying its side of the border.

The North erected barbed-wire fences within 262 feet of the dividing line and cleared ground for land mines, South Korea’s JoongAng daily newspaper reported in June.

A U.N. Command official told Stars and Stripes on June 23 that North Korea’s construction appeared defensive and has not disturbed the “equilibrium” within the DMZ. The official spoke on condition of anonymity due to topic’s sensitive nature.

That month, South Korean troops also took a North Korean soldier into custody after he crossed the border in an apparent attempt to defect.

Julie Masson is a reporter based at Camp Humphreys, South Korea. She began her journalism career in 2011 and has covered a diverse range of beats, including business, finance, trade, automobiles, antitrust, culture and music. She holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism and international studies from Korea University and a master’s degree in Asian international affairs from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa.

Yoojin Lee is a correspondent and translator based at Camp Humphreys, South Korea. She graduated from Korea University, where she majored in Global Sports Studies.