NORTH KOREA – SOUTH KOREA Tension increases between the two Koreas due to the ‘balloon war’

Some North Korean soldiers crossed the border, probably by mistake, Seoul said. He continues sending garbage-filled balloons from Pyongyang, while Kim Jong Un’s sister warned that launching more propaganda material from the South could provoke “new reactions.” Military movements intensify.

Seoul (/Agencies) – The reciprocal sending of balloons between the two Koreas is raising tension on both sides of the border. This morning the South Korean Army announced that it had fired warning shots two days ago following a probably accidental incursion by North Korean soldiers into an overgrown area along the Korean demarcation line that divides the peninsula. “We believe that they had no intention of invading our territory, considering that they immediately moved north after the calls and warning shots,” said Joint Chiefs of Staff Command spokesman Lee Sung-joon.

In the meantime, however, the balloon exchange that began late last month continues. Two weeks ago, North Korea sent about 3,500 garbage-filled balloons across the border after activists in Seoul sent propaganda leaflets and other smuggled materials to the north. They are launched by activist groups in which North Korean defectors are also active. The Joson Reform and Opening Commission (the name used to refer to North Korea) makes its own balloons with 3D printers. Equipped with GPS, they can cost up to $1,000, but the impact these modern balloons have on people living in the North is unclear.

The dropping of leaflets from South Korea has become more frequent since September: before it was the South Korean government that carried out propaganda, but the activity was banned in 2020 for national security reasons. A few months ago, the Constitutional Court overturned the ban, saying it did not respect the right to freedom of expression, but the balloon launch is considered controversial in South Korea: residents and military personnel near the border have often complained because they think it is a useless provocation. On June 4, Seoul also suspended a military agreement signed in 2018 that provided for the reduction of military exercises on the demarcation line and the suspension of propaganda activities. A decision that will most likely lead to an increase in tensions, experts say. Two days ago, the sister of dictator Kim Jong Un, Kim Yo Jong, stated that Pyongyang could undertake a “new reaction” that is not better specified against South Korea if Seoul continues to launch propaganda messages from loudspeakers placed near the border. Another activity recently resumed after the breakdown of the 2018 treaty, signed after intense diplomatic activity by former South Korean president Moon Jae-in, who, unlike the current president, Yoon Suk-yeol, was in favor of a rapprochement with North Korea. and had met with Kim Jong Un several times.

The deterioration of relations began in 2022 and since then Pyongyang has never stopped testing military weapons. After North Korea’s failed launch of a spy satellite in May, Seoul began conducting aerial exercises near the existing no-fly zone near the demarcation line and received support from the United States. During a joint exercise, a US bomber dropped guided bombs, an episode that It hasn’t happened for seven years..