In response to airborne trash from North Korea, Seoul employs loudspeaker announcements.
The announcement from South Korea's presidential office mentioned that the resumption of propaganda broadcasts across the border was in response to the neighboring country's actions. In a statement, they attributed the "heightening of tensions" entirely to the North. The North's behavior had made these countermeasures necessary.
According to the South Korean army, over 300 balloons filled with trash bags have been sent into South Korean territory since Saturday. Around 80 of these bags have already reached the South, and currently, there are no balloons visible in the air. Initial analysis of these bags indicated that they were filled with paper and plastic material and were not dangerous.
In a move to warn citizens about these balloons, the city administration of Seoul and the local authorities in the province of Gyeonggi sent out text messages on Saturday. The mayor of Seoul, Oh Se Hoon, termed this action as a "petty provocation against our civilian areas" through a post on Facebook.
Previously, North Korea had sent hundreds of bags of trash over the border. These trash shipments contained various items such as cigarette butts, plastic, fabric scraps, paper remnants, and possibly animal waste. As a response to this, South Korea had halted a military agreement with North Korea from 2018 last year. The goal of this agreement was to lessen tensions on the Korean Peninsula and avoid unforeseen escalation, specifically, along the heavily fortified border.
Part of the military agreement was partially suspended by South Korea in 2020 when North Korea launched a spy satellite into space. This allowed South Korea to conduct military exercises and to carry out propaganda broadcasts via loudspeakers near the border.
Following the trash balloons being sent, South Korean activists have sent back their own balloons filled with K-Pop recordings, dollar bills, and leaflets criticizing North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, leading to North Korean anger.
This move by South Korea to restart the propaganda broadcasts, which date back to the Korean War, could potentially intensify tensions between the two countries, as noted by experts.
