Why Didn't North Korea Shoot Down the Sewage Balloon?..."Provocation Equivalent to an Act of Hostility"

"Clear Violation of Ceasefire Agreement... Gray Zone Provocation"

(Source: Yonhap News)

Amid over 800 police reports nationwide related to the two rounds of filth balloons dispersed by North Korea, an analysis has emerged that this filth balloon provocation is a "gray zone provocation equivalent to an act of engagement."

On the 3rd, Jo Han-beom, a senior research fellow at the Korea Institute for National Unification, appeared on KBS Radio's "Jeonggyeok Sisa" and said, "The armistice agreement is essentially a ceasefire, and its fundamental spirit is not to engage in hostile acts against the other party," adding, "Provocations along the DMZ Military Demarcation Line are provocations mobilizing the People's Army under the command of the Reconnaissance General Bureau, and are naturally violations of the armistice agreement."

Researcher Jo specifically termed this a "gray zone provocation." Filth balloons or GPS jamming are difficult for our side to respond to, and it is hard to identify the perpetrators and origin points, but they can ultimately lead to serious provocations.

Regarding the possibility that North Korea might have put biochemical agents in the filth balloons, Researcher Jo said, "If that happens, it would immediately become an act of engagement," and noted, "The international community severely prohibits such actions, and if such acts occur, even China or Russia would find it difficult to assist North Korea."

As for why our military does not shoot down the filth balloons, he pointed out concerns about friendly fire and casualties. Researcher Jo mentioned, "If bullets fly northward during shooting, it could lead to engagement due to misfire, and if bullets fall southward, there are concerns about casualties or property damage." He explained, "If explosives were involved, they should be shot down, but currently, the concept is to identify and collect them safely as they fall in mountainous areas, so the military is responding appropriately."

(Data=Yonhap News)

Meanwhile, this is the first time in eight years since 2016 that North Korea has used filth balloons. Over 1,000 filth balloons were identified over six days, including more than 720 on the 1st and 2nd. Additionally, since the 29th of last month, North Korea has conducted GPS signal jamming attacks heading south from north of the Northern Limit Line (NLL) in the West Sea for five consecutive days. Although there was no impact on our military operations, navigation malfunctions have continued on passenger ships and fishing boats traveling in the Incheon maritime area.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.