This handout photo taken on August 4, 2025 and provided by the South Korean Defence Ministry shows South Korean soldiers removing loudspeakers that were set up for propaganda broadcasts near the Demilitarised Zone separating the two Koreas in an undisclosed location in South Korea. - AFP/South Korean Defence Ministry
SEOUL: North Korea has begun dismantling loudspeakers along the border with South Korea that had been used for propaganda broadcasts, according to the General Staff in Seoul on Saturday (Aug 9), as reported by the Yonhap news agency.
The move comes just days after South Korea completely removed its own loudspeaker systems in an effort to ease tensions between the two countries.
It remains unclear, Yonhap reported, whether North Korea will take down all of its loudspeakers. The South Korean military said it would continue to monitor the situation.
South Korea had already halted broadcasts from its loudspeakers in mid-June. President Lee Jae Myung described the step as part of his efforts to reach out to the North. Since taking office, Lee has sought to improve the strained relationship between the two sides.
Under Lee's predecessor, Yoon Suk Yeol, the loudspeakers had been reactivated for the first time in six years, in response to balloons launched from North Korea that carried trash into the South. - dpa
