North Korea has pledged to temporarily cease the launch of balloons filled with trash, including cigarette butts and animal feces, to South Korea. This act, described as a 'countermeasure' by the official North Korean agency KCNA, ends a period during which nearly 1,000 balloons were sent over the border, with 600 launched on Sunday alone.
These balloons landed in South Korea's northern provinces, encompassing densely populated areas such as the capital Seoul and the Gyeonggi region. Although South Korean officials reported that no dangerous substances were found in the balloons, the action has been denounced as 'low-level' by Seoul, leading to escalating tensions between the two nations.
In response, South Korea announced the suspension of its 2018 military agreement with North Korea, with the National Security Council stating that the pact's terms posed significant challenges to its armed forces amid recent provocations from Pyongyang. This decision permits South Korea to conduct military training near the border and enhance its readiness against future provocations.
Pyongyang's balloon campaign was justified as retaliation against South Korean activists who have historically sent propaganda leaflets, money, rice, and USB drives containing South Korean TV dramas into North Korea. The practice of sending these materials has been a longstanding irritant for North Korea, despite South Korea's passing of a law in 2020 criminalizing such actions—a law later deemed a violation of free speech and subsequently overturned.
North Korea's Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang Il claimed that around 15 tons of garbage were sent to South Korea using roughly 3,500 balloons between late May and early June. He stated that their balloon activities were paused as they were purely retaliatory and threatened to send even more waste should South Korea resume sending leaflets.
The situation remains tense as both sides have threatened further actions. South Korea has considered resuming loudspeaker broadcasts of propaganda along the demilitarized zone, an operation that was ceased following the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement. The South Korean government has assured its citizens that they are maintaining full readiness and closely monitoring North Korea's movements.
- Debris from the balloons sent by North Korea has been found scattered across parts of South Korea, including the capital area. Detailed reports from the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed the balloons were largely filled with non-hazardous materials.
- Since the end of the Korean War in 1953, both countries have technically remained at war, governed by an armistice. North Korea, known for its isolation, limits foreign materials strictly, with harsh punishments for those caught with contraband.
- The two nations experienced a brief thaw in relations in 2017 and 2018, leading to certain South Korean cultural elements, notably K-dramas, penetrating North Korea. However, the collapse of diplomatic talks in subsequent years has reinstated strict rules within the hermit nation.
- Recently discovered footage revealed North Korean teenagers sentenced to hard labor for watching and distributing South Korean dramas, highlighting the stringent control North Korea continues to exert over foreign informational influence.
