On Saturday, North Korea launched approximately 240 trash-laden balloons toward South Korea, according to media reports citing the country’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. This marks the 11th time that the North has sent such balloons to its southern neighbor since late May. North Korea began sending trash-filled inflatables in retaliation for balloons carrying propaganda leaflets being sent to the North. In response, South Korea resumed full-scale daily propaganda broadcasts through its border loudspeakers in mid-July.
A few of the latest batch of balloons made it to Gyeonggi Province, which surrounds the capital of Seoul, with local police confirming having received two reports of trash-laden inflatables over the weekend. The South Korean Joint Chief of Staff stated that the balloons contained scraps of paper and plastic bottles, with no hazardous substances detected in their payload.
Tensions between the two neighbors have been high in recent months due to Pyongyang’s missile tests and Seoul’s joint drills with the US on the peninsula. In early June, North Korea announced that it would temporarily halt dropping trash over the border, claiming that the campaign had achieved its goals. However, the official warned that Pyongyang could resume launches if Seoul undertakes further hostile actions.
South Korean authorities have reported that the balloons launched in recent months contained cigarette butts, plastic, and human waste, with some of them equipped with timers to make them pop mid-air. South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik described these actions as “unimaginably shameful and base for a normal country.
In response to the trash-laden balloons, Kim Yo Jong, a member of North Korea’s supreme political body, the State Affairs Commission, stated that “when you experience how unpleasant and tiring it is to be sent sticky filth, you will realize that you can’t talk about freedom of expression so easily when it comes to [leafleting] in border areas.