North Korea said it will resume anti-South Korean propaganda broadcasts along the two countries' heavily armed border, as Seoul called on Pyongyang to hold discussions aimed at lowering tensions.
Kim Yo Jong, a senior North Korean official and the sister of leader Kim Jong Un, said on Wednesday that the North would deploy loudspeakers along the entire border. The announcement came after she and top military officials inspected fortifications along the disputed frontier area.
Kim warned that Seoul would face "the most terrible and painful situation" if South Korea continued actions that Pyongyang describes as interference in North Korea's internal affairs.
In a follow-up statement on Thursday, she said the North would put "new countermeasure means" on standby along the border without giving details, and would keep its loudspeaker system in a "waiting" state for the next few days.
Tensions have risen since a landmine explosion last month wounded three South Korean soldiers inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two countries. Seoul accuses North Korean soldiers of deliberately planting the mines in the border area as part of Pyongyang's construction of defensive fortifications.
Kim rejected the accusation, calling the incident a fabrication by South Korea. She said North Korean tactical units had taken up new positions and accused the South Korean military of conducting warning broadcasts and firing warning shots at multiple locations near the border.
Seoul said the warning shots were "legitimate and defensive measures".
North Korea has recently added mines, barbed-wire fences, anti-tank barriers and other fortifications to the border area, already among the most heavily armed in the world.
A South Korean defense ministry spokesperson said on Thursday that the ministry was calling on North Korea to discuss measures to reduce border tensions and prevent unintended military clashes.
Pyongyang previously cut its military hotline with South Korea after declaring it would no longer seek dialogue or unification with what it calls its "enemy".
Loudspeaker propaganda
Historically, both North and South Korea have used loudspeakers to blast propaganda across the border. South Korean broadcasts, which have included K-pop and news, have long annoyed Pyongyang and prompted similar retaliatory responses.
The two Koreas are divided by the DMZ, established after the 1950-1953 Korean War ended in an armistice.
Since 2024, North Korea has stepped up fortifications on its side of the DMZ with mines, barriers and fences, in an effort to establish what it calls a permanent border with South Korea.
