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On Sept. 19, 2018, South Korean Defense Minister Song Young-moo (front left) and North Korean Defense Minister No Kwang-chol (front right) hold up signed copies of the Agreement on the Implementation of the Historic Panmunjom Declaration in the Military Domain, known also as the Comprehensive Military Agreement, as the respective leaders of the South and North look on. (Pyongyang press pool/Kim Jung-hyo)

In Pyongyang on Sept. 19, 2018, the defense ministers of South and North Korea signed the “Agreement on the Implementation of the Historic Panmunjom Declaration in the Military Domain” as part of the Pyongyang Joint Declaration.

At the heart of the agreement, known colloquially as the Sept. 19 military agreement, was the establishment of buffer zones on the land, in the sea and in the air between the two Koreas and a suspension of hostile activities.

The agreement included the suspension of mutually hostile activities, demilitarization of the Joint Security Area (JSA), trial removal of guard posts inside the DMZ, joint recovery of Korean War remains, and shared use of the Han River estuary.

On the ground, the two sides agreed to completely cease artillery drills and field training exercises at the regimental level and above within 5 kilometers (3 miles) of the Military Demarcation Line (MDL).

At sea, the two sides installed covers on the barrels of naval guns and coastal artillery and closed gunports in a buffer zone north of Deokjeok Island and south of Cho Island off the peninsula’s western coast and north of Sokcho and south of Tongcheon on the eastern coast.

They also ceased all live-fire and maritime maneuver exercises within the zone.

In the air, the two Koreas established no-fly zones for different kinds of aircraft along the MDL.

For unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), the no-fly zone is set at 15 kilometers from the MDL in the east and 10 kilometers in the west.

The intrusion of five UAVs into the airspace above the greater Seoul area on Dec. 26 violated the comprehensive military agreement.

South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense said North Korea has violated the Sept. 19 military agreement 17 times so far.

South Korea has violated the Sept. 19 military agreement twice while responding to North Korean violations.

After the intrusion of the North Korean UAVs on Dec. 26, South Korea sent a UAV north of the MDL.

Likewise, after a North Korean missile crossed south of the maritime demarcation line in the East Sea on Nov. 2, South Korean warplanes fired three air-to-ground missiles into open waters north of the maritime demarcation line.

By Kwon Hyuk-chul, staff reporter

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