North Korea Sends 'Trash Balloons' Again... Riding the Wind Back to North Korea

JCS "Most Forces Moved North of Military Demarcation Line"
North Korea Resumes Missile Provocation This Morning After Two Months

North Korea once again released 'trash balloons,' but they were confirmed not to have crossed the Military Demarcation Line (MDL).

According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff on the 12th, the military authorities identified about 20 trash balloons released by North Korea during the night of the previous day. Most of the objects presumed to be trash balloons moved north of the MDL. A Joint Chiefs of Staff official explained, "Most of them moved north of the MDL, and currently, none are identified in the air."

On the morning of the 5th, trash balloons were seen rising from Gaepung County, Hwanghaebuk-do, North Korea, as viewed from Odusan Unification Observatory in Paju-si, Gyeonggi Province. [Image source=Yonhap News]

After nearly a month of silence following the balloon release on the 10th of last month, North Korea flew balloons for five consecutive days from the 4th to the 8th of this month, and following the nighttime balloon release the previous day, resumed ballistic missile provocations in the morning of the same day after about two months.

North Korea recklessly released trash balloons for five consecutive days from the 4th to the 8th. During this period, about 1,300 balloons were identified to have been released, with approximately 400 of them falling on the South Korean side. In some areas where the balloons fell, fires presumed to have been caused by heat timers also occurred.

North Korea also resumed military provocations after two months. The military detected several short-range ballistic missiles (SRBMs) launched from the Pyongyang area toward the East Sea around 7:10 a.m. that day. The missiles flew about 360 km before landing in the East Sea.

This was the first time in 73 days since July 1 that North Korea launched ballistic missiles. At that time, North Korea claimed to have fired tactical ballistic missiles equipped with a 'new heavy warhead' and announced additional tests in July, but no actual launches were carried out.

A military official stated, "North Korea's missile launches are clear provocative acts that seriously threaten peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula," adding, "We will maintain the capability and posture to overwhelmingly respond to any provocations."