North Korea says it will stop sending trash balloons as South Korea vows strong retaliation

North Korea halts trash balloon launches after South Korea vows strong retaliation, escalating tensions and prompting diplomatic responses.

North Korea Halts Trash Balloon Campaign Amid South Korean Threats of Retaliation

 

SEOUL, South Korea — North Korea announced it will cease its controversial practice of sending trash-filled balloons into South Korea, following stern warnings from Seoul about impending "unbearable" retaliatory actions. The announcement was made on Sunday, hours after South Korea declared its intention to respond strongly to the balloon campaign and other provocations.

 

Kim Kang Il, North Korea's vice defense minister, stated that the decision to suspend the balloon launches was temporary and a direct response to prior South Korean leafleting campaigns. "We made the ROK (Republic of Korea) clans get enough experience of how much unpleasant they feel and how much effort is needed to remove the scattered wastepaper," Kim said through state media. He warned that North Korea would resume the balloon activities if South Korean activists launched anti-Pyongyang propaganda leaflets again.

 

Earlier in the day, South Korea's military reported the discovery of over 700 balloons from North Korea in various locations within its territory. The balloons carried cigarette butts, scraps of cloth, waste paper, and vinyl, but no hazardous substances. The Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed these findings, while Kim disclosed that North Korea had sent 3,500 balloons carrying 15 tons of wastepaper.

 

South Korea's national security director, Chang Ho-jin, announced that the government had decided to take "unbearable" measures against North Korea. This response is not only to the balloon launches but also to alleged jamming of GPS navigation signals and recent simulations of nuclear strikes by the North. Chang criticized these acts as "absurd, irrational acts of provocation that a normal country can’t imagine," accusing North Korea of attempting to incite public anxiety and chaos within South Korea.

 

Observers suggest that South Korea's potential retaliatory actions could include the resumption of front-line loudspeaker broadcasts into North Korea. These broadcasts, which North Korea finds particularly provocative, often feature criticism of the North's human rights record, world news, and K-pop songs. Such broadcasts are a powerful tool given that most North Koreans lack official access to foreign media.

 

The balloon campaign by North Korea is viewed by experts as an effort to deepen internal divisions within South Korea over its conservative government's stringent policy on the North. It also seems aimed at escalating tensions ahead of the U.S. presidential election in November. North Korea has significantly increased its weapons tests since 2022, seeking to expand its nuclear arsenal. Just last week, it conducted a series of nuclear-capable missile tests simulating a preemptive strike on South Korea.

 

This balloon conflict is part of a broader pattern of provocative actions. In 2020, North Korea demolished a South Korean-built liaison office in response to similar balloon activities. Experts believe that North Korea’s current campaign is designed to pressure South Korea while testing the resolve of its conservative administration.

 

As tensions simmer, the international community watches closely, aware that the actions of both Koreas could have far-reaching implications for regional stability and global security.