Tensions between the two Koreas rising over the 'balloon war'
Some North Korean soldiers crossed the demarcation line, probably by mistake, South Korean authorities report. North Korea continues to float waste-laded balloons, while Kim Jong Un's sister warns that more South Korean propaganda could provoke "new countermeasures". Meanwhile, military activities are intensifying.
Seoul (AsiaNews/Agencies) – Tensions are rising along the intra-Korean border, as the two sides engage in balloon warfare against each other.
This morning, the South Korean military also announced that, two days ago, its soldiers fired warning shots after an incursion, most likely accidental, by North Korean soldiers into an area covered with vegetation along the demarcation line that divides the peninsula.
“We believe that they did not intend to invade, considering that they immediately moved northward after the warning broadcasts and warning shots,” said Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson Lee Sung-joon.
The balloon war that began at the end of last month continues. Two weeks ago, North Korea sent about 3,500 waste-laden balloons across the border after a Seoul-based activist group, which includes some North Korean defectors, sent balloons capable of dispersing leaflets and other material over the border.
The Committee for Reform and Opening-Up of Joson (another name for North Korea) is making balloons with 3D printers, equipped with GPS, at a cost of US$ 1,000. It is unclear what impact these “smart” balloons have on North Koreans.
Leaflet drops by South Korean groups have increased since September 2023. The South Korean government too used to engage in this kind of propaganda, but banned it in 2020 on national security grounds.
A few months ago, the Constitutional Court overturned the ban saying it does not respect the right to freedom of expression. Still balloon launching is deemed controversial in South Korea: often residents and the military near the border have complained about it, finding it an unnecessary provocation.
Meanwhile, on 4 June, South Korea suspended a 2018 military agreement that curtailed military exercises on the demarcation line and stopped propaganda activities.
According to some experts, this decision is likely to an increase in tensions. In fact, two days ago, dictator Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, said that Pyongyang could undertake unspecified "new countermeasures" against South Korea if Seoul continues its propaganda with loudspeakers on the border.
The latter resumed only recently after the 2018 deal broke down. It was signed after intense diplomatic negotiations by former South Korean President Moon Jae-in who, unlike the current office holder, Yoon Suk-yeol, favoured rapprochement with North Korea and met with Kim Jong Un several times.
Relations between the two Koreas began to deteriorate in 2022; since then, North Korea has not stopped testing military weapons.
After the failed launch of a North Korean spy satellite in May, South Korea began conducting air drills near the no-fly zone along the demarcation line with US backing.
During a joint exercise, a US bomber dropped guided bombs, something that had not occurred for seven years.
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12/02/2016 15:14
03/12/2010
