South Korea’s military on Friday announced the resumption of its continuous loudspeaker broadcast campaign directed at North Korea. This action comes in retaliation to what it described as the “despicable, shameful, and vulgar” launching of balloons by Pyongyang, which carried trash over the border.
The loudspeaker broadcasts, along with the balloons—historically launched by South Korean activists carrying anti-North Korea propaganda leaflets—have emerged as fresh points of contention between the two nations.
Since May, North Korea has released thousands of balloons equipped with trash bags, which have been carried by the wind into the South, landing in civilian areas and causing property damage.
Following another such balloon launch by the North on Thursday amid efforts to mitigate monsoon rain damage, Seoul’s military opted to reinstate the continuous broadcasts.
The military denounced these actions in a statement, labelling them as a blatant breach of the armistice agreement, and demanded an immediate halt to these “contemptible, disgraceful, and indecent acts,” with a warning of intensified measures if the North continues to dispatch trash balloons.
Last month, South Korea had briefly resumed these broadcasts—featuring propaganda, world news, and K-pop music—using large loudspeakers at the border, marking the first such instance in six years following repeated cautions to the North against the trash dispatches. However, these broadcasts were only for an hour.
Previously halted under a 2018 peace agreement, which has since been deemed null by both parties amidst rising tensions, these broadcasts are viewed by military officials and activists as a potent psychological warfare tool.
