Pyongyang has announced it will bring back loudspeaker propaganda aimed at South Korea across the heavily armed frontier, just as Seoul called for talks to lower tensions.
Kim Yo Jong, a senior North Korean official and sister of leader Kim Jong Un, made the announcement on Wednesday. She said the North would install loudspeakers along the whole frontier after inspecting fortifications on the disputed border with senior military leaders.
Kim warned Seoul that it risked “the most horrible and distressing situation” if it continued what Pyongyang describes as interference in its internal affairs. In a follow-up statement on Thursday, she said the North would put “new counter means” on alert along the border, without giving details, and that its loudspeakers would be on “standby” within days.
Landmine blast fuels a dispute over blame
The tensions follow a landmine explosion last month in the DMZ that wounded three South Korean soldiers. Seoul has accused North Korean troops of deliberately laying the mines as part of the North’s fortification work.
Kim rejected that claim, describing the incident as a South Korean fabrication. She said North Korean tactical units had moved into new positions, and accused South Korean troops of carrying out warning broadcasts and firing warning shots at several points near the border. Seoul has described the warning shots as “legitimate and defensive measures”.
North’s fortifications and severed military contact
North Korea has been adding mines, barbed wire, anti-tank barriers and other defences to a frontier that is already among the most heavily armed in the world. Since 2024, it has reinforced its side of the DMZ as it works toward what it calls a permanent border with the South.
Pyongyang has also cut off a military hotline with Seoul, after declaring it would no longer pursue dialogue or unification with what it calls its “foe”. Both sides have historically used loudspeakers to broadcast propaganda across the border. South Korean programmes featuring K-pop and news have long irritated the North and prompted tit-for-tat responses.
The two Koreas are separated by the DMZ, which was established when the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice.
Seoul presses for talks to avoid clashes
South Korea’s Ministry of National Defence urged the North on Thursday to discuss measures to ease tensions at the border and to prevent any accidental military clash, a spokesperson said.
