Joint Chiefs say loudspeaker maintenance detected before Kim Yo-jong statement
Military communication channels with North Korea remain severed
South Korea's Defense Ministry signaled Thursday that it would respond in kind if North Korea follows through on its threat to activate loudspeakers along the entire Military Demarcation Line this month, saying "if North Korea does something, we naturally believe proportional measures should follow." The statement marked the first time military authorities — who had previously questioned the effectiveness of loudspeaker broadcasts against the North — publicly acknowledged the possibility of a reciprocal response.
Defense Ministry spokesperson Jeong Bit-na made the remarks at a regular briefing Thursday, when asked whether the ministry was reviewing a counter-loudspeaker response. "It is a bit awkward to answer a hypothetical question, but North Korea is also speaking in hypotheticals," she said, before adding that "nothing has been decided."
Asked how the ministry assessed the effectiveness of loudspeaker broadcasts against the North, Jeong said the public should refer to what Defense Minister Kang Shin-cheol had said at the national audit. At the Oct. 7 national audit, Kang said, "If it were the most powerful tool, I would have used it," adding that "whether this is effective against the enemy is something we truly need to reconsider." He nonetheless left the door open, saying he could not say the option had been "completely ruled out."
Earlier, Kim Yo-jong, vice department director of the Korean Workers' Party, said in a statement Wednesday that "our tactical hunting units are occupying new positions, and psychological warfare loudspeakers targeting South Korea will be activated along the entire border line within October." Kim and Pak Jong-chon, an adviser to the North Korean Defense Ministry, also inspected what Pyongyang called a "southern border fortification" construction site the same day.
Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson Jang Do-young said the military had been monitoring "related movements on the western front" on Wednesday and had been "continuously keeping a close watch and identifying relevant developments." He added that routine maintenance activity on North Korea's loudspeakers had been identified even before North Korea's statement. On how the South would respond if the North resumed loudspeaker broadcasts, Jang said the military would "conduct a joint investigation with the UN Command and take appropriate and effective measures."
On the deployment of firing positions for what Kim called "new fire units," Jang said no movements indicating the installation of new North Korean weapons or similar equipment had been identified, but added that the military was "keeping a close watch since North Korea made the claim."
Concerns were also raised that North Korea's construction of concrete barriers and barbed wire fences near the MDL could effectively entrench Pyongyang's own interpretation of the line. Jang said North Korea "must halt its activities near the MDL," calling them "a clear violation of the Armistice Agreement," and pledged to "take action in consultation with the UN Command."
It has been one month since a South Korean soldier was wounded by a landmine North Korea planted south of the MDL. Asked whether the military's pledged "corresponding measures" had proven effective, Jang said the military had been conducting operations to strengthen DMZ initiative, including mine-clearing operations, in close consultation with the UN Command. He argued that North Korea reacting through statements was itself proof of effectiveness, and said the military would "continue to carry out appropriate and justified measures."
Some questioned whether South Korea had lost the initiative, given that North Korea had labeled the South's warning shots and warning broadcasts as "provocations" — without offering any apology — and had preemptively played the loudspeaker card. Jang rebuffed the suggestion, saying "we do not believe we have lost the initiative," and that the military was "taking appropriate and effective measures according to plan, and we assess that North Korea is responding accordingly."
On concerns that an exchange of loudspeaker broadcasts would increase fatigue among frontline troops and raise the risk of accidental clashes, Defense Ministry spokesperson Jeong urged North Korea to return to dialogue. "The military communication channel between the two Koreas is completely severed at the moment," she said, adding that "the very fact that they are issuing statements is itself evidence of that."
She urged North Korea to come to the dialogue table to prevent misperceptions and accidental clashes, and called for a halt to such actions.
rimsclub@heraldcorp.com
