North Korea’s trash-carrying balloons have caused significant disruptions to flights in South Korea, affecting over 10,000 passengers on 115 commercial jets, according to data provided by MP Jeong Jun-ho.
The balloons, sent in retaliation for similar missives from South Korean activists carrying anti-Kim Jong Un propaganda, have forced flights to delay takeoffs, landings, and even divert to alternative airports.
Passengers on long-haul flights from the United States experienced lengthy delays and inconvenience when their planes were forced to land at Cheongju Airport instead of Incheon International Airport. Jeong referred to this disruption as “an embodiment of Korea Risk,” highlighting the hesitancy investors face due to military threats from the North.
Despite calls for authorities to prevent activists from sending balloons into the North, a 2023 court ruling bans such actions as an unjustifiable infringement on free speech. The current state of relations between the two Koreas is at a low point, with North Korea increasing weapons testing and growing closer to Russia amid accusations of supplying arms for the war in Ukraine.
According to a report by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, North Korea has resorted to sending trash instead of propaganda leaflets because it recognizes that promoting its ideology to South Koreans is “laughable.”
However, the report warns that the trash-filled balloons and the damage they cause should not be taken lightly, as they constitute a form of “soft terrorism.”
The balloons, sent in retaliation for similar missives from South Korean activists carrying anti-Kim Jong Un propaganda, have forced flights to delay takeoffs, landings, and even divert to alternative airports.
Passengers on long-haul flights from the United States experienced lengthy delays and inconvenience when their planes were forced to land at Cheongju Airport instead of Incheon International Airport. Jeong referred to this disruption as “an embodiment of Korea Risk,” highlighting the hesitancy investors face due to military threats from the North.
Despite calls for authorities to prevent activists from sending balloons into the North, a 2023 court ruling bans such actions as an unjustifiable infringement on free speech. The current state of relations between the two Koreas is at a low point, with North Korea increasing weapons testing and growing closer to Russia amid accusations of supplying arms for the war in Ukraine.
According to a report by the Centre for Strategic and International Studies, North Korea has resorted to sending trash instead of propaganda leaflets because it recognizes that promoting its ideology to South Koreans is “laughable.”
However, the report warns that the trash-filled balloons and the damage they cause should not be taken lightly, as they constitute a form of “soft terrorism.”
