JCS to Operate Loudspeakers Continuously from 4 PM Today
"We Were Patient and Warned, but North Korean Forces Ignored"
"If North Korea Provokes, Stronger Measures Will Be Taken"
The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that starting from 4 p.m. on the 19th, they will continuously operate loudspeakers directed at North Korea in response to North Korea's release of filth balloons. This serves as a warning that they had tolerated North Korea's violation of the armistice agreement and given them a chance to stop, but North Korea ignored it.
According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on the 19th, the military authorities will continuously conduct loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea from 4 p.m. on the same day, on a scale similar to that implemented during the North Korean military's release of trash balloons the previous day. A Joint Chiefs of Staff official stated, "If the North Korean military again carries out various provocations, including the release of filth balloons, our military will take stronger measures such as full-scale loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea."
The past scene of loudspeaker movement and installation conducted at the front lines. [Photo provided by the Joint Chiefs of Staff]
The Joint Chiefs of Staff strongly criticized, saying, "The North Korean military has continuously released filth and trash using balloons a total of eight times from May 28 until early this morning," and "These actions by the North Korean military clearly violate the armistice agreement and are despicable and low-level acts that endanger the daily lives of our people." They further emphasized, "Our military has been patient and repeatedly warned the North Korean military, giving them opportunities to stop these actions on their own, but the North Korean military ignored them."
The Joint Chiefs of Staff explained, "Especially in a situation where both South and North Korea have suffered severe damage due to heavy rains, they repeated these vile acts," and "We have judged that we can no longer tolerate the ongoing preparatory activities for balloon releases."
Additionally, they stated, "All responsibility for this situation lies entirely with the North Korean military, and we strongly urge them to immediately stop these vile, despicable, and low-level acts," and "Our military is closely monitoring North Korean military activities under the firm ROK-US combined defense posture and maintains the capability and readiness to overwhelmingly respond to any provocations."
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