North Korean soldier defects across border to South

SEOUL: A North Korean soldier defected to South Korea across their heavily fortified land border, which the two sides have begun to demilitarise as relations between the Cold War-era foes warm, the South’s military said.

The rare defection came as the two Koreas push ahead with a process of reconciliation in an effort to ease tensions, despite talks between Pyongyang and Washington on the North’s nuclear weapons programme stalling.