North Korea installs loudspeakers, satellite images show damaged liaison office: Report

North Korea has reportedly started to reinstall loudspeakers in the demilitarized zone along the South Korean border in its latest step to violate inter-Korean peace agreements. According to media reports, South Korean officials are also considering to install their own loudspeakers near the border but will wait for broadcast.

North Korea is also preparing to send around 12 million propaganda leaflets to South Korea using balloons as retaliation to recent activities of defectors. According to North’s state-run KCNA, Pyongyang’s plan to send millions of leaflets using an aerial armada of balloons is an expression of “unquenchable anger” of all the citizens.

"The time for retaliatory punishment is drawing near," said the official agency in a statement.

South Korea’s Unification Ministry spokesperson told reporters that Pyongyang should refrain from sending leaflets, saying such actions are not helpful for inter-Korean relation at all. Comprehending the use of drones in case of unfavourable weather conditions, South’s Defense Minister told lawmakers that the government would take swift and corresponding steps against any provocation.

Read: North Korea Says It Has Prepared 12 Mn Anti-South Leaflets As 'retaliatory Punishment'

Row over leaflets

The inter-Korean relations took a major hit after defectors started floating the leaflets to criticise Kim Jong-un’s regime over human rights violations and nuclear ambitions. Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, had warned South Korea to stop defectors from throwing anti-Pyongyang leaflets near the de-militarised zone. On June 4, Kim Yo issued a statement saying Seoul will be “forced to pay a dear price” if they let the activities continue.

On June 16, North Korea confirmed that it destroyed the inter-Korean liaison office and cut all communication lines with South Korea amid rising tension in the Korean peninsula. Satellite images provided by commercial company Maxar Technologies showed that the building remained standing but heavily damaged after the explosion.

Meanwhile, the activist groups have continued sending rice, medicine, and face masks to North Korea via sea, as “humanitarian” gesture despite legal action from South Korean authorities. According to media reports, defectors have accused Unification Ministry of targeting them all of a sudden when they knew about the activities for a long time.

Read: South Korea's Nuclear Envoy To Hold Talks With US Amid Rising Tensions With North Korea

(With agency inputs)