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South Korean military said Wednesday it had stopped broadcasting anti-North Korea propaganda through speakers along the border as part of a new liberal government bid to ease tensions between rivals and “restore trust.”
The move fulfilled a campaign promise from South Korea’s new liberal president, Lee Jae-myeon. Lee Jae Myung replaced the ousted conservative Yoon Sak Yeol, who took office in the early election last week.
Lee vowed to improve his relationship with Pyongyang. It responded violently to Yoon’s tough policies, and as a result, he avoided dialogue with Seoul.
South Korea’s Ministry of Defense said suspending broadcasts was part of efforts to “restore trust in Korean language relations and promote peace on the Korean Peninsula.”
North Korea is extremely sensitive to external criticism of authoritarian leadership and its ruler Kim Jong-un, but has not commented on Seoul’s moves.
Broadcasts had previously been suspended for six years, but they resumed last June when North Korea flew garbage-filled balloons across the border.
According to Seoul, between May and November last year, around 7,000 balloons flew about 7,000 balloons towards Korea at 32 separate events, dropping waste, pieces of cloth, tobacco sucking, and even fertilizer.
Pyongyang said that the balloon campaign came after South Korean activists were sent over balloons filled with anti-North Korean leaflets and a USB stick filled with popular songs and dramas in the South.
Psychological warfare
The Cold War-style psychological war campaign added to tensions driven by North Korea’s growing nuclear ambitions and South Korea’s efforts to expand joint military exercises with the US and strengthen tripartite security cooperation with Japan.
During the recent South Korean election campaign, Lee promised to stop broadcasting, claiming it had created unnecessary tension and discomfort among residents of southern border towns.
These residents complained about North Korea’s retaliation broadcast. This included howling animals, pounding gongs and other stimulating sounds.
At a briefing on Monday, South Korea’s Ministry of Unification also called on the country’s private activists to stop flights of anti-Northern propaganda leaflets across the country’s borders.
Such activities can raise tensions in the South Korean Peninsula and threaten the lives and safety of residents in border areas,” a spokesman for the ministry said.
Despite Lee’s pledge to resume communication channels with Pyongyang, the chances of an early resumption of dialogue between rivals remain low.
North Korea has consistently rejected such offers from the South and the United States since 2019, when nuclear talks between Washington and Pyongyang collapsed over sanctions-related conflicts.
Pyongyang’s foreign policy priorities currently lie in Russia. Russia has received thousands of North Korean troops and a large amount of military equipment in recent months due to its war with Ukraine.
Additional sources •AP
