By Kim Young-jin
Staff reporter
South Korea could resume its broadcasting of propaganda across the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) and into North Korea, if the reclusive state is found culpable for the deadly sinking of a Navy vessel, a military official said Monday.
The two Koreas exchanged heated propaganda along the 248-kilometer-long border for decades until both sides halted the broadcasts in 2004 as part of reconciliation efforts.
But inter-Korean relations have frayed since President Lee Myung-bak took office in February 2008. His administration has taken a tough line on Pyongyang, linking aid to the struggling state with progress on its denuclearization.
Tension continues to run high as the investigation into the sinking of the Navy vessel Cheonan increasingly implicates the North. Pyongyang has denied responsibility for the incident, which occurred March 26 near the disputed inter-Korean maritime border. Forty-six seamen were killed in the incident.
``We're considering resuming loudspeaker broadcasts on the border as part of possible military measures if it is confirmed the North is behind the sinking,'' Yonhap News Agency quoted an unnamed military official as saying. ``A working-level study into that possibility is now under way.''
The official added the move would be in line with instructions from Defense Minister Kim Tae-young, the report said.
Suspicion of North Korean culpability continues to grow after reports that aluminum fragments consistent with a torpedo were found at the scene.
President Lee has pledged ``firm and definite'' action once the multinational investigation is concluded. But analysts believe military reprisal is unlikely as it could result in a sudden large-scale conflict.
Seoul has also said it could take the matter before the U.N. Security Council to seek stiffened sanctions on the already-struggling North. The two Koreas technically remain at war, as the 1950-53 Korean War ended in an armistice, not a peace treaty.