North Korea’s trash balloon provocations are going too far. I cannot help but condemn North Korea for using such underhanded methods, sending ten groups of garbage balloons from July 24 until now. By examining three of Kim Yo Jong’s statements, I can see that this instigation is being carried out under the leadership of the North Korean military and Kim Yo Jong.
I previously predicted that North Korea would send trash balloons on July 24 or 25 by analyzing Kim Yo Jung’s statements, and my prediction proved accurate when North Korea sent their balloons on July 24. The South Korean military detected around 500 of these balloons, and some landed in Seoul and other metropolitan regions. I was able to predict the exact date because of the wind direction forecast. North Korea required northwest winds to send their balloons because they travel purely by wind power without any propulsion device.
Some analysts say that North Korea deliberately made the balloons fall near the Yongsan presidential office and the National Assembly building, but I don’t believe North Korea thought that far ahead. Rather, South Korean media has ended up informing North Korea exactly where their balloons landed. If North Korea planned the landing sites, they would have attached GPS devices to track trajectories.
The more noteworthy aspect of the latest round of trash balloons is the change in what they contain. North Korea is sending trash balloons because they view anti-Pyongyang leaflets sent by South Korean civilian groups as “trash,” and are responding in kind. They’re also sending a message that they want South Koreans to experience how unpleasant it is to clean up such trash. Previous North Korean balloons were filled with waste like scrap paper, cigarette butts, and fabric. However, the trash inside the balloons this time show a different pattern. North Korea has included large quantities of identical product packaging, such as “instant flour noodles” and “corn rice cake.”
For the past four years, I’ve been analyzing trash washed ashore on the West and East Coasts from North Korea, collecting over 5,000 items. I haven’t found any of the products found in the recent balloons in the packaging I’ve collected over the last four years. Recently produced North Korean products often copy South Korean designs. Ramen packaging, for example, has copied the design of a certain South Korean ramen brand so that apart from the difference in the use of words, “ramen” and “instant noodles,” the product design is almost indistinguishable. However, the “instant flour noodles” found in these trash balloons differ from recent products. They lack barcodes or QR codes, and the national standard is marked as 2004, suggesting they are older products.
Why include such packaging? Most North Korean trash balloons were previously found intact on the ground. There’s an explosive device inside the balloons, so if one filled with product packaging burst mid-air, debris would scatter widely. Currently, when a balloon is found, citizens report it, and the military conducts a biological and chemical substance inspection before collection. This process takes about an hour, only because the balloon did not burst in mid-air and its debris did not scatter widely.
If debris with North Korean information scattered mid-air, citizens would report even a single piece found. Unlike simple leaflets of the past, these objects require biological and chemical examinations, so authorities must respond to every report. This could lead to social unrest and even paralyze South Korea’s administrative system. Aircraft takeoffs and landings are halted when a trash balloon approaches an airport. If multiple balloons scattered their content mid-air, collection would require significant manpower. We can’t rule out the possibility that Kim Yo Jung’s provocations aim to create such chaos.
Moreover, North Korea has increased the quantity of balloons and added more detonation devices. The scarcity of northwest winds in summer suggests North Korea’s provocations may evolve. However, they can still send balloons by exploiting momentary wind changes near the DMZ. Therefore, South Korean authorities need to be thoroughly prepared and respond more aggressively. Loudspeaker broadcasts are the most suitable strategic response to trash balloon provocations. We should make every effort to introduce external information to enhance North Korean citizens’ right to know and enable them to become agents of change in their regime.
Translated by Annie Eun Jung Kim.
Please send any comments or questions about this article to dailynkenglish@uni-media.net.
July 29, 2024 at 10:59PM
by DailyNK(North Korean Media)