SEOUL, South Korea (AP) 鈥� South Korea鈥檚 military said Saturday it detected North Korea removing some of its loudspeakers from the inter-Korean border, used for anti-North Korean propaganda broadcasts, in a bid to ease tensions.
South Korea鈥檚 Joint Chiefs of Staff didn鈥檛 disclose the sites where the North Koreans were removing speakers and said it wasn鈥檛 immediately clear whether the North would take all of them down.
In recent months, South Korean border residents have complained that North Korean speakers blasted irritating sounds, including howling animals and pounding gongs, in a tit-for-tat response to South Korean propaganda broadcasts.
The South Korean military said the North stopped its broadcasts in June after Seoul鈥檚 new liberal president, halted the South鈥檚 broadcasts in his government鈥檚 first concrete step toward easing tensions between the war-divided rivals. South Korea鈥檚 military began removing its speakers from border areas on Monday but didn’t specify how they would be stored or whether they could be quickly redeployed if tensions flared again.
North Korea, which is extremely sensitive to any outside criticism of its authoritarian leadership and its third-generation ruler, didn鈥檛 immediately confirm it was taking down its speakers.
South Korea鈥檚 previous conservative government resumed daily loudspeaker broadcasts in June last year, following a yearslong pause, in retaliation for North Korea flying toward the South.
The speakers blasted propaganda messages and K-pop songs, a playlist designed to strike a nerve in Pyongyang, where Kim has been pushing an intense campaign to eliminate the influence of South Korean pop culture and language among the population in a bid to strengthen his family鈥檚 dynastic rule.
The Cold War-style psychological warfare campaigns further heightened tensions already inflamed by North Korea鈥檚 advancing nuclear program and South Korean efforts to expand joint military exercises with the United States and their trilateral security cooperation with Japan.
Lee, who took office in June after winning an early election to replace ousted wants to improve relations with Pyongyang, which reacted furiously to Yoon鈥檚 hard-line policies and shunned dialogue.
But Kim Yo Jong, the of the North Korean leader, rebuffed by Lee鈥檚 government in late July, saying that Seoul鈥檚 鈥渂lind trust鈥� in the country鈥檚 alliance with the United States makes it no different from its conservative predecessor.
She later issued a separate statement dismissing the Trump administration鈥檚 intent to resume diplomacy on , suggesting that Pyongyang 鈥� now focused on expanding over the war in Ukraine 鈥� sees little urgency in resuming talks with Seoul or Washington.
Tensions between the Koreas can possibly rise again later this month, when South Korea and the United States proceed with their annual , which begin on Aug. 18. North Korea labels the allies鈥� joint drills as invasion rehearsals and often uses them as a pretext to dial up military demonstrations and weapons tests aimed at advancing its nuclear program.
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