The South Korean military resumed loudspeaker broadcasts directed at North Korea on Sunday after a 6-year interval. The move is to counter hundreds of trash balloons the North sent across the border this weekend.
South Korean media reported that the broadcasts on Sunday afternoon included some news stories. The military says whether the broadcasts continue depends entirely on how the North responds. It says Pyongyang is fully responsible for the heightened tensions.
The South used to broadcast news, K-pop and messages about human rights from loudspeakers near the military demarcation line. The campaign had been halted after the Inter-Korean summit in 2018.
Kim Yo Jong is the sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un. She issued a statement criticizing the South Korean military’s broadcasts.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Sunday it had counted about 330 balloons since Saturday night. Some were found over the capital Seoul and Gyeonggi Province. About 80 balloons reportedly landed inside South Korea.
Military officials say the balloons were carrying paper and other trash but so far no hazardous materials have been found.
The North apparently sent more balloons flying toward the South on Sunday night.
The latest incident came after a group of North Korea defectors in the South sent its own balloons on Thursday. They were carrying leaflets criticizing Kim Jong Un, as well as memory sticks filled with South Korean dramas and other data.