Trash-carrying balloons sent by North Korea yesterday hit the South Korean presidential compound, security officials said, prompting Seoul to mobilize chemical response teams in the escalating propaganda war.
It was the first time the South Korean leader’s office in downtown Seoul, which is protected by scores of soldiers and a no-fly zone, has been directly hit by any of the thousands of trash-carrying balloons launched by Pyongyang since May.
“The chemical, biological and radiological [warfare] response team has safely collected the trash balloons,” the presidential security service said.
Photo: AP
“After investigation, results have confirmed that there were no danger or contamination of the object,” it said.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff had earlier confirmed the North was once again sending the trash-carrying balloons, while Seoul city authorities also issued an alert yesterday morning.
“If you find any fallen balloons do not touch them, and report them to the nearest military unit or police station,” it said.
The presidential office had been monitoring the balloon in real time, and was aware of exactly where it would land, Yonhap news agency reported.
“It is difficult to handle midair because we do not know what the balloons may contain,” it reported the office as saying.
“There will be no change in our policy of collecting them after they have fallen,” it said.
The military has refrained from shooting down the balloons out of concern their contents could spread further and cause more damage, Yonhap said.
The balloons are a security issue for Seoul, but in this instance the North just got lucky, an analyst said.
“It is a security problem since there are different defense facilities for the presidential complex,” Ewha Women’s University professor Park Won-gon said.
“Since the balloons fly with the wind, they fall very randomly. It’s difficult to say North Korea intended to do this,” he added.
This is the 10th time the North has sent the balloons across the border this year in what it claims is retaliation for anti-regime propaganda balloons launched by South Korean activists.
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