South Korean Defense Minister Suh Wook says the murder of a South Korean official by North Korea amounts to a violation of the spirit of inter-Korean military agreements. 

Suh made the remark while speaking during a meeting of the National Assembly National Defense Committee on Thursday. 

The assessment was made in response to a claim by Representative Kang Dae-sik of the major opposition People Power Party(PPP) that with the acts, the North violated not only the April 27 Panmunjeom Declaration from the inter-Korean summit in 2018 but also the ensuing inter-Korean military agreements. 

The minister said he made his assessment after examining joint inter-Korean statements before attending the parliamentary meeting. 

When pressed on why the South Korean military did not immediately respond after it secured intelligence on the fatal shooting, Suh said the intelligence was too limited to be acted upon, adding that the military continuously sought to verify the information.