Unification minister Kim Yung-ho said a decision on suspending or abolishing the tension-diffusing 2018 inter-Korean military agreement should be made after a comprehensive review of security on the Korean Peninsula.

The comment came during Wednesday’s parliamentary audit of the ministry in response to a question by main opposition Democratic Party Rep. Park Byeong-seug, who asked about the sensibility of suspending the agreement despite a lack of major provocations by Pyongyang.

After Park pointed out that the North has yet to mention scrapping the deal, the minister said the regime has violated the spirit of the agreement through many actions, and it is "quite wrong" that only Seoul has been the sole adherent to the agreement.

On Tuesday, newly appointed defense minister Shin Won-sik pledged to swiftly suspend the deal, arguing that it has restricted the country's ability to detect imminent provocations from the North in real time.

[Photo : YONHAP News]