South Korea wants North Korea to withdraw heavy artillery from the border

The North Korean national flag flies on a tower in the village of Gijungdong, near the inter-Korean demilitarized zone, in August 2017. Photo: Reuters.

"As far as I know, South Korea has proposed to move North Korean artillery units with a range of Seoul to the rear to actively implement the Panmunjom Declaration,"YonhapJune 17, citing a government source.

According to the source, this is one of the proposals to reduce tension that has beenSouth Korea made the proposal at the first general-level talks between the two Koreas in more than a decade on June 14. Seoul wants Pyongyang's heavy artillery units to withdraw 30-40 km from the demarcation line between the two Koreas.

"We state our stance to the Tri side."We must take measures to significantly reduce military tensions by removing actual threats after the US and North Korea have discussed denuclearization," the unnamed source said.

In the Panmonjum joint declaration after their summit on April 27, South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un pledged to negotiate to sign a peace treaty formally ending the Korean War this year.

According to South Korea's Defense White Paper, North Korea has 14,100 artillery pieces, including many 170mm self-propelled guns and 240mm multiple rocket launchers, most of which are deployed near the border with South Korea and are capable of raining millions of rounds on the capital Seoul if conflict breaks out.