Minister of Unification Chung Dong-young advocated that the tension-diffusing military agreement North and South Korea signed in 2018 be restored this year.

At an event marking the seventh anniversary of the Seoul-Pyongyang Joint Declaration and Inter-Korean Military Agreement on Friday, Chung said that discussions regarding the deal are currently taking place within the South Korean government.

The minister's remark comes after President Lee Jae Myung announced his intent to gradually restore the agreement in a speech on Liberation Day in August.

The deal signed under former President Moon Jae-in bans firearms training and field exercises within the inter-Korean "buffer zone" on land, at sea and in the air; designates a no-fly zone; and stipulates disarmament of the Joint Security Area.

The succeeding Yoon Suk Yeol government, however, suspended the no-fly zone provision following the North's reconnaissance satellite launch in November 2023. Pyongyang declared its termination in response.

Former President Yoon suspended the entire deal in June 2024 in the wake of the North's series trash balloon launches and GPS-jamming attacks targeting the South.