North Korea's Trash Balloon Response Met with Resumption of 'Loudspeaker Broadcasts'... Heightened Inter-Korean Tensions (Comprehensive Report 2)

Resuming Broadcast Today with Installation of Loudspeakers Facing North Korea
Countermeasure Against Balloon Dropping of Waste
Possibility of North Korean Provocation... "Thorough Preparedness"

The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced on the 9th that they recently conducted a live exercise in the front-line area in preparation for the immediate implementation of broadcasts to North Korea. The photo shows the movement and installation of loudspeakers conducted in the front-line area in the past.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The government has decided to resume loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea, a sensitive issue for the North, in response to North Korea's resumption of 'filth balloon' dispersal.

On the morning of the 9th, the Presidential Office held an emergency Standing Committee meeting of the National Security Council (NSC) chaired by Jang Ho-jin, Director of the National Security Office, and announced that loudspeakers would be installed and broadcasts conducted toward North Korea within the day.

The Presidential Office stated, "Although the measures we are taking may be unbearable for the North Korean regime, they will deliver messages of light and hope to the North Korean military and civilians," adding, "We make it clear that the responsibility for any escalation of tensions between the South and North lies entirely with North Korea."

It continued, "The government will maintain a firm and thorough readiness posture against any provocations from North Korea," emphasizing, "We will do our utmost to ensure the safety of our citizens and national security."

Previously, North Korea dispersed filth balloons toward South Korea twice, on the 28th-29th of last month and the 1st-2nd of this month, citing South Korea's distribution of leaflets to the North. The South Korean military identified about 1,000 balloons. The balloons contained filth and trash such as cigarette butts, waste paper, and plastic.

After temporarily halting the dispersal, North Korea resumed sending filth balloons on the 6th and 7th in response to South Korean defector groups releasing leaflets toward the North.

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, North Korea had released about 330 filth balloons by 10 a.m. on the day. So far, about 80 have fallen in South Korean territory.

From the left, Daenam waste balloons found near Jamsil Bridge in Seoul, the sea off Incheon, Geumchon-dong in Paju, and a field in Inhuri, Icheon.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Following North Korea's filth balloon dispersal, the government suspended the entire effect of the September 19 Military Agreement on the 4th through a Cabinet meeting and President Yoon Suk-yeol's approval.

With the suspension of the September 19 Military Agreement, which prohibits hostile acts between the South and North, all restrictions on loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea and military exercises near the border have been lifted.

Loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea are considered a powerful psychological warfare tool that North Korea is highly sensitive about. Fixed loudspeakers, when set to maximum output, are known to carry sound up to about 24 km at night and about 10 km during the day.

The songs, weather information, and news broadcast from the loudspeakers are analyzed to potentially cause psychological agitation among North Korean soldiers in the border area.

There are 24 fixed and 16 mobile loudspeakers toward North Korea in the frontline area. The fixed loudspeakers had been stored in warehouses since the April 2018 Panmunjom Declaration and the September 19 Military Agreement, and the mobile ones were parked at nearby units but are now ready to be reactivated.

In his Memorial Day speech on the 6th, President Yoon described North Korea's recent provocations as "despicable methods," stating, "The government will never tolerate such threats from North Korea. We will maintain an ironclad readiness posture and respond firmly and overwhelmingly to provocations."

At the NSC meeting that day, participants agreed that "any attempt to cause public anxiety and social chaos through North Korea's renewed filth balloon dispersal is unacceptable."

The meeting was attended by Director Jang Ho-jin, Chief Secretary Jeong Jin-seok, Foreign Minister Cho Tae-yul, Unification Minister Kim Young-ho, Defense Minister Shin Won-sik, National Intelligence Service Director Cho Tae-yong, Office for Government Policy Coordination Director Bang Ki-seon, NSC Secretariat Chief Kim Tae-hyo, Deputy Director of the National Security Office In Sung-hwan, and Third Deputy Director Wang Yoon-jong.

On the 9th, when the government decided to resume loudspeaker broadcasts to North Korea, the area around Gaepung County, Hwanghae Province, North Korea, viewed from Odusan Unification Observatory in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, was quiet. [Image source=Yonhap News]

The resumption of loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea is expected to heighten tensions on the Korean Peninsula.

North Korea has been highly sensitive to loudspeaker broadcasts, strongly demanding their suspension during inter-Korean talks. In 2015, when the Park Geun-hye administration resumed loudspeaker broadcasts in response to North Korea's landmine provocations, North Korea retaliated with artillery shelling on the western front.

A Presidential Office official explained the background of resuming loudspeaker broadcasts, saying, "As long as North Korea is clearly engaging in acts that disrupt South Korean society and increase public anxiety, the government cannot remain passive. Although the contents of the filth balloons are not fatal, they can have psychological impacts on our citizens, so a strong response is inevitable."

Regarding the possibility of further provocations by North Korea, the official said, "The possibility always exists, but our government and military are thoroughly prepared and ready to respond."

When asked about the broadcast times, content, and frequency of the loudspeaker broadcasts, the official replied, "We cannot disclose detailed information that North Korea would fully understand."

However, when asked if the intensity of the loudspeaker broadcasts would increase in case of additional provocations, the official said, "There will be differences in scale, number of broadcasts, and frequency," adding, "Not revealing our strategy can heighten North Korea's fear."

Regarding compensation measures for citizens affected by the filth balloons, the official said, "Relevant ministries are currently discussing this," and "Various preparations are underway."

The official also commented on the recent sentencing of former Peace Deputy Governor Lee Hwa-young, who served under Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea and former governor of Gyeonggi Province, to 9 years and 6 months in prison in the first trial on charges of conspiring to send funds to North Korea through Ssangbangwool Group, stating, "It is not appropriate to comment on court rulings."

However, the official added, "Regarding peace between South and North Korea, peace is not something that can be begged for with money but is something to be achieved through strength, which is a repeated lesson in human history."

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