Photo : KBS
Anchor: North Korea has sent some 55-hundred trash-laden balloons to the South on 22 occasions since late May. The South Korean military said it will take stern measures if it believes the North has crossed the line or if it inflicts serious damage on the South Korean people. Some of the balloons caused flight delays at Incheon International Airport on Monday.
Bae Joo-yon has this report.
Report: The South Korean military has warned of “stern military measures” if North Korea continues its ongoing trash balloon campaign.
The Joint Chiefs of Staff(JCS) said in a statement Monday that it will take stern military measures if it decides North Korea has crossed the line or if it inflicts serious damage on the South Korean people.
The statement did not elaborate on the nature of the military measures the JCS is planning.
The JCS said that since May 28, the North has launched some 55-hundred trash-laden balloons on 22 occasions, with the goal of stirring conflict within South Korea by causing inconvenience and anxiety among South Koreans, in acts the JCS called disgraceful and petty.
The military plans to continue collecting the balloons after they land and has rejected calls to shoot them down in the air, saying that doing so could compromise public safety.
North Korea sent some 120 trash balloons between Sunday evening and Monday morning, causing flight delays at Incheon International Airport on Monday.
According to the airport, a trash-laden balloon was seen in the skies near the airport around 5:25 a.m. Monday, preventing aircraft from using the runway until it was confirmed to have fallen into the sea around 6:43 a.m.
All takeoffs and landings were halted a second time between 6:55 a.m. and 7:08 a.m. after debris from balloons was found on airport property.
Bae Joo-yon, KBS World Radio News.