South Korean military to remove loudspeakers at border

2024-06-23 10:56:31      点击：218

On Feb. 15, 2018, a South Korean military vehicle with loudspeakers is seen in front of the barbed-wire fence in Paju, near the border with North Korea, South Korea. / AP-Yonhap

South Korea's defense authorities will take down loudspeakers installed along the border with North Korea later Tuesday in a follow-up to their summit deal last week, officials said.

"As (we) notified, we will today begin the removal of the loudspeaker broadcast equipment from front-line regions," a military official said.

The military plans to allow the media to cover the start of the removal work at a border area in Paju, Gyeonggi Province, in the afternoon.

In this June 16, 2004 file photo, South Korean army soldiers remove loudspeakers used for propaganda near the demilitarized zone between South and North Korea, in Paju, South Korea. / AP-Yonhap

The South began blaring anti-Pyongyang broadcasts using high-decibel loudspeakers along the border in 1963, most recently from around 40 locations. The program included messages critical of the North's communist system, news on South Korea and even K-pop music before the South switched it off just ahead of the talks between President Moon Jae-in and the North's leader Kim Jong-un.

In their Panmunjom meeting, they agreed to cease all hostile acts and eliminate their means, including broadcasting through loudspeakers and distribution of leaflets, in the areas along the Military Demarcation Line.

It's part of various agreed-upon measures aimed at building mutual trust and turning the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) into a real peace zone.

It was not immediately confirmed when the North will take down its own loudspeakers at the DMZ. (Yonhap)