On Sunday, North Korea released balloons filled with garbage towards South Korea, according to the South Korean military, which announced it would counter with "full-scale" loudspeaker broadcasts. The South Korean military warned that the North's actions, escalating tensions near the heavily fortified border, could lead to fatal outcomes, and that the North Korean regime would bear full responsibility.
"As we have warned on multiple occasions, the military will initiate loudspeaker broadcasts on a full scale and across all fronts starting at 1 p.m. today," stated the South's Joint Chiefs of Staff, labeling the North's balloon launch as crude and disgraceful. For years, activists and defectors in South Korea have sent their own balloons carrying propaganda leaflets and other materials into North Korea, provoking Pyongyang.
Earlier this week, South Korea's military decided to restart its 24-hour loudspeaker broadcast campaign aimed at North Korea in response to what it deemed a contemptible act of launching balloons by Pyongyang, laden with trash, across the border. Since May, North Korea has been releasing thousands of balloons with bags of trash, which has become a new point of tension between the two Koreas. South Korea's broadcasts, featuring propaganda, world news, and K-pop music, are regarded by military officials and activists as an effective form of psychological warfare.
