Voice of America (VOA) reported that North Korea has demolished the Gyeongui Line railway and two adjacent buildings within the Kaesong Industrial Complex.
VOA cited satellite images taken by the private satellite service Planet Labs, which showed that a building located about 200 meters (approximately 400 meters from Panmun Station) from the southern entrance of the Kaesong Industrial Complex, near the railway, has disappeared.
The building, which previously measured 43 meters in width and 21 meters in length and had a white exterior, now has its roof and walls dismantled.
Three Gyeongui Line tracks were in front of this building, all removed, leaving only bare ground.
A building located approximately 1.2 kilometers westward toward Kaesong has also disappeared along the same tracks.
VOA speculated that the demolition likely occurred within the last one to three weeks, as satellite images taken on July 14 showed the building intact.
Between 2001 and 2008, the South Korean government provided in-kind loans worth approximately 132 million USD to construct railways, roads, and stations on the North Korean sections of the Gyeongui Line and Donghae Line. This funding is likely used for the demolished tracks and buildings.
North Korea has ramped up efforts to block any potential exchanges with South Korea after designating inter-Korean relations as a belligerent state during a plenary meeting at the end of last year. In January, the Supreme People’s Assembly declared South Korea its primary adversary.
At the Supreme People’s Assembly, Kim Jong Un stated that “the section of the Gyeongui Line on our side, which existed as a symbol of inter-Korean exchange and cooperation, must be physically severed to an irrecoverable level.”
Earlier this year, North Korea laid mines on the Gyeongui and Donghae Line roads in January, removed streetlights from the streets in April, and dismantled the northern section of the Donghae Line railway leading to the Kumgang Mountain area from the Military Demarcation Line (MDL) in May. At the end of June, it was also confirmed that North Korea removed railroad ties and rails from the northern section of the Gyeongui Line, connecting Kaesong Station and the MDL.
