Military guard posts of North Korea, background, and South Korea, foreground, are seen in Paju, near the inter-Korean border, Jan. 2. AP-Yonhap

North Korea has so far yet to deliver a response to South Korea's message about an unidentified person who crossed the eastern inter-Korean border over the weekend, the defense ministry said Monday.

South Korea sent the message through a western military communication line Sunday "in light of protecting our citizens," though it has yet to verify the details about the person who crossed the heavily fortified border Saturday night.

The fate of the person was not immediately confirmed amid reports the North has a "shoot-to-kill" policy in place as part of tougher border control measures against COVID-19.

"We sent the message in light of protecting our citizens, and we have not received a reply from North Korea yet," ministry spokesperson Boo Seung-chan told a regular press briefing.

Weekend border crosser thought to be North Korean defector: military 2022-01-03 13:04  |  North Korea
South Korea's military is trying to verify whether the person in question was a South Korean citizen or a former North Korean defector. Also unknown is whether the person was a civilian or military personnel.

"We are currently in the process of identifying the unknown person in cooperation with the related authorities," Col. Kim Jun-rak, the spokesperson of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, also told reporters.

Kim added no unusual North Korean military movements have been detected.

The latest incident has called into doubt South Korea's border defense despite its military's earlier pledge to bolster defense with high-tech surveillance systems. (Yonhap)