Müllballon lands on President's seat in Seoul
South Korea is bombarded with political messages and pop music towards the North, while Pyongyang sends balloons filled with trash and foul smell to the South in return.
A reportedly trash-filled balloon from North Korea has landed on the grounds of the Presidential Palace in Seoul, according to South Korea's General Staff in Seoul, as reported by the official news agency Yonhap. No chemical, biological, or radiological hazards were detected from the balloon. According to media reports, the trash balloon caused no damage.
North Korea had previously sent numerous balloons towards the border province of Gyeonggi, north of Seoul. The population was urged not to touch stray balloons and to report them to the police or military. Since late May, according to South Korean reports, North Korea has launched over 3000 balloons filled with waste products and sometimes foul smell towards South Korea, including 500 on Sunday.
For months, the two Korean states have employed psychological warfare methods. Last Thursday, the South Korean government resumed the propaganda broadcasting of the isolated neighbor's messages over loudspeakers at the border. The military broadcasts both political messages and South Korean pop music over the loudspeakers facing North Korea. The North Korean leadership views such actions as serious provocations.
After a period of de-escalation, the conflict on the Korean Peninsula has gained significant intensity in the recent past. Since early 2022, North Korea has been testing nuclear-capable missiles and other weapons at an increased rate. South Korea and the US have been strengthening their military cooperation.
Despite the South Korean government's broadcasting of political messages and pop music towards North Korea, the latter continues its retaliation, sending balloons filled with trash and foul smell over the border to South Korea regularly. This escalation in the North Korea Conflict is causing tensions to rise in the politics of both countries.
