PYONGYANG/SEOUL – Kim Yo-jong, department director of the Central Committee of the Workers' Party of Korea, said on Friday that the Republic of Korea intended "to plunge the situation in the Korean Peninsula again into a critical state" over a recent mine explosion along the border, according to state media.

In a press statement carried by the official Korean Central News Agency (KCNA), Kim called the mine explosion a "farce created by Seoul", adding that Seoul's conclusion was "groundless."

The incident occurred on Sept 21 near the MDL, where three ROK soldiers from the army's 25th division were injured while conducting a mission inside the southern side of the demilitarized zone dividing the two Koreas.

The senior official of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea stressed that her country's move to fortify its southern border is aimed at "shutting down the door forever so that we will have nothing to do with the ROK."

Seoul should "stop at once its nonsense to tarnish the image of our state," she was quoted by KCNA as saying.

Three ROK soldiers from the army's 25th division were injured during a mission inside the ROK side of the demilitarized zone, Yonhap News Agency reported on Sept 21, citing sources from the ROK military.

ROK President Lee Jae-myung has ordered a thorough probe into the landmine blast, saying the country will take necessary measures depending on the outcome of the investigation.

Also on Friday, ROK Unification Minister Chung Dong-young proposed dialogue with the DPRK to resolve lingering discrepancies over the military demarcation line (MDL) following the landmine explosion in the DMZ.

Describing the DMZ mine blast as an "unfortunate incident," Chung told domestic reporters that the core cause of the accident stemmed from different measurements of the MDL.

The minister stressed that the lines, measured by the ROK, the DPRK and the United Nations Command, are all different, cautioning that similar accidents could happen again at any time unless the issue is addressed.

Chung directly extended a formal dialogue proposal to Pyongyang, saying "it is time to meet and communicate."