North Korean leader Kim Jong Un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, has dismissed South Korea’s claims that Pyongyang removed some of its propaganda loudspeakers along the border.
In a statement published by state media KCNA on Thursday, Kim Yo Jong asserted that the speakers “have never been removed” and that North Korea has “no intention” of taking them down. She added that the regime’s stance of refusing to improve ties with South Korea “will be enshrined in our constitution in the future.”
Earlier this week, South Korea’s military said North Korea had dismantled some of its loudspeakers, just days after Seoul removed part of its own installations. Kim, who serves as deputy director of North Korea’s propaganda department, called Seoul’s statement “groundless, unilateral speculation and a diversion.”
For years, both sides have used the loudspeakers for psychological warfare — South Korea broadcasting news, anti-Pyongyang messages, and K-pop songs, while North Korea countered with eerie sounds, such as howling animals, and pro-regime propaganda. Residents near the border have complained that the blaring noises, sometimes in the middle of the night, disrupted daily life.
Pyongyang has long considered Seoul’s broadcasts an act of war and previously threatened to destroy the equipment. The South resumed its broadcasts in June 2024 after a six-year break, during which impeached former president Yoon Suk Yeol had taken a more hardline approach toward the North. The move came in retaliation after Pyongyang began sending balloons filled with trash across the border.
Relations appeared to warm under new South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, who pledged to improve inter-Korean relations. Shortly after taking office in June, Lee halted the broadcasts as a gesture to “restore trust” and “pursue peace on the Korean Peninsula.”
However, tensions remain high. Earlier this week, North Korea warned of “resolute counteraction” against what it sees as provocations, ahead of upcoming joint military exercises between South Korea and the United States.
