Bahk Eun-ji has been with The Korea Times since 2012, building a career across multiple desks. She began at the Business Desk, where she conducted in-depth interviews with key figures in Korea's corporate world. Later, she moved to the Politics & City Desk, focusing on education policy and social affairs. She later served as team leader of the digital content team, leading curation efforts on the newspaper’s homepage and reshaping print stories for social media audiences to enhance digital reach. Now back on the Politics Desk, she covers the National Assembly and the Ministry of National Defense, with a renewed focus on political developments.
North Korean test-fire could bring back loudspeaker broadcasts
Test-firing a long-range missile or detonating a nuclear bomb by the North would upset relations between the two Koreas such that the South might resume its loudspeaker broadcasts, directed at North Korean soldiers and civilians near the DMZ, Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) chairman, General Choi Yoon-hee, said Friday.
"We will not consider a nuclear test or long-range missile launch as a normal situation," General Choi said during a parliamentary audit, strongly indicating that Seoul will resume its propaganda broadcasts should the North carry out either of these tests.
After the two Koreas struck the breakthrough deal to defuse the sharply escalating tension last month, Seoul agreed to stop its broadcasts critical of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un in return for Pyongyang expressing "regret" for wounding two South Korean soldiers. While out on patrol, the soldiers stepped on shoe bombs planted by the North in the South’s sector of the DMZ.
The South agreed to stop the broadcasts "unless an abnormal situation occurs," implying that South Korea would resume the broadcasts if North Korea should to test fire a missile or explode a nuclear device.
No official definition of the phrase, “abnormal situation,” has thus far been given.
"What constitutes an abnormal situation has yet to be defined,” General Choi noted. “But I believe a nuclear test or the launching of a missile should be seen as one.”
North Korea is reportedly preparing to test a long-range missile in October as part of its celebrations for the 70th anniversary of the founding of the Workers' Party of Korea.