North Korea prepares to restart border propaganda loudspeakers

Summarised from 3 outlets · Updated 22 Oct, 05:15 · Archive

North Korea will activate propaganda loudspeakers along its border with South Korea within days, Kim Yo-jong has announced.

Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has announced that propaganda loudspeakers aimed at South Korea will be ready to restart within days along the entire border. The statement came after she visited border fortification sites with senior military officials on Wednesday.

Both North and South Korea have historically used giant loudspeakers to broadcast propaganda across the border. North Korea has broadcast animal sounds, whilst South Korea has used K-pop music and news criticising Pyongyang. If the broadcasts resume, they would be the first loudspeaker exchange across the border in 16 months. South Korea's President Lee Jae Myung suspended broadcasts from the southern side shortly after taking office in June 2025 to ease tensions, and the military dismantled the speakers in August.

Tensions between the two countries have risen since September, when a landmine blast south of the military demarcation line injured three South Korean soldiers, two of them seriously. Seoul and the UN command concluded it was a North Korean anti-personnel mine and an armistice violation. Pyongyang denied responsibility and called the incident a 'self-staged farce'.

Kim Yo-jong also threatened further measures, saying tactical units had taken up new positions and accusing South Korean troops of conducting warning broadcasts and warning shots near the border. She said that North Korean troops would 'mercilessly eliminate' South Korean forces if warning fire resulted in harm to North Korean territory or personnel.

South Korea's defence ministry said that if North Korea proceeded with restarting the loudspeakers, 'naturally there would have to be a proportional measure', but made clear no decision had been made. The joint chiefs of staff noted that routine maintenance of North Korea's loudspeakers had been observed before Kim Yo-jong's statements.

How it is being reported

• Kim Jong Un's sister issues new South Korea threat after leader's 'death' rumoursKim Yo Jong has lashed out at South Korea earlier this week and threatened to deploy additional weapons along its border - she now said loudspeakers, used for propaganda, will be in place by the end of the monthThe Mirror · 22 Oct, 04:58
• North Korea prepares to restart propaganda loudspeakers as ties sour with SouthKim Yo-jong, sister of Kim Jong-un, issues warning after inspecting border fortifications against backdrop of rising tensions Propaganda loudspeakers aimed at South Korea will be ready to restart within days along the entire border, Kim Yo-jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, has said amid a worsening of ties between the two countries. The statement, carried by the state news agency KCNA on Thursday, came a day after she said the loudspeakers would be in operation along the whole border from some time in October. Continue reading...The Guardian · 22 Oct, 04:56
• North Korea’s Kim Yo Jong warns South Korea, says border loudspeakers to be ready within daysThe threats deal a blow to South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's efforts to ease inter-Korean hostility.The Japan Times · 22 Oct, 01:15

In this story: Kim Yo-jong · Kim Jong-un · Lee Jae Myung · North Korea · South Korea

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