"The (South Korean) Ministry of National Defense and the JCS judged that the North's GPs, subject to the withdrawal agreement, cannot carry out any missions as military posts now, and that (we) have thus achieved the goal of disabling them," Suh Wook, chief director of operations at the JCS, told reporters.

The North is confirmed to have pulled out all troops and military equipment from the 11 GPs. One or two crenels near five of the 11 GPs were seen left partially destroyed but are thought to be inoperable, the JCS said.

"We have found some crenels in potential minefields where access is limited, but all passages connecting them to the GPs were caved in, meaning they cannot function," a military official said on condition of anonymity.

During its verification work south of the border, the North gave "positive" onsite assessments, but demanded that the South promptly remove the wreckage left from the South's work to tear down barbed-wire fences that used to encircle its GPs.

"In conclusion, the two sides have confirmed through the onsite verification that they had faithfully implemented the agreement to pull out GPs on a trial basis, which was stipulated in the Sept. 19 military accord," Suh said.

"While maintaining a solid security posture, our military will buttress the peace process on the Korean Peninsula," he added.

The two Koreas' defense chiefs signed the military accord after the third summit between South Korean President Moon Jae-in and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in Pyongyang. It includes a series of confidence-building and conventional arms control measures.

During the verification work, the South sent 11 seven-member teams across the Military Demarcation Line to check the disablement of 11 North Korean GPs and their underground facilities in the morning. The North also sent its teams to carry out the verification in the afternoon. (Yonhap)