South Korea Announces Major Security Response to North’s Balloon Stunts

South Korea announced its decision to fully suspend its military agreement with North Korea after a wave of balloons carried trash over the border.

The 2018 inter-Korean military pact originally reduced tensions in the region by restricting military presence near the border, but it lost significance last year when Pyongyang declared it was not restricted by the agreement any more. Now, South Korea’s National Security Council is promising to suspend the agreement entirely in a cabinet meeting on Tuesday, according to Reuters.

North Korea continuously sent around 3,500 balloons, which dropped 15 tons of trash over the border, an act that Seoul described as a provocation and a significant breach of the 2018 agreement. North Korea claimed the balloons were in retaliation for anti-regime leaflets sent by South Korean activists, a tactic that has long aggravated Pyongyang.

The NSC has proposed the full suspension of the military agreement, which will be reviewed in a cabinet meeting set for Tuesday. If approved, this suspension will allow South Korea to conduct military training near the demilitarized zone and enhance its readiness to respond to North Korean provocations.

Newsweek contacted the South Korean Embassy in London for comment.

The original Panmunjom Declaration signed in April 2018 was the result of several years of negotiation, and represented a significant step forward in reducing tensions between the North and South. It reduced military action near the border and outlined plans to avoid accidental escalation, while also proposing long-term steps towards denuclearization.

However, the pact had already been partially suspended by South Korea last year after North Korea launched a spy satellite in the region. North Korea subsequently declared the agreement void, resuming military activities near the border. The National Security Council indicated that the continued compliance with the pact was hindering South Korea’s military readiness.

The trash balloons, which included items such as cigarette butts and likely manure, landed in South Korea’s densely-populated northern provinces, including Seoul. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff have labelled these actions as “irrational” and “low-class,” claiming that while they do not violate U.N. sanctions, they pose a threat to public safety and border stability.

South Korean officials have hinted at the possibility of resuming loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts along the border, a tactic that has previously incited anger from Pyongyang. These broadcasts have included anti-Kim Jong Un messages and cultural content aimed at undermining the North Korean regime.

Propaganda like this was what prompted the balloons in the first place, with Pyongyang’s vice-minister of defense Kim Kang Il saying that the balloons were designed to make South Korea know what it felt like to have anti-North Korean leaflets thrown at them by the South.