The Balloon Trash Dropped by the President’s Office… Concerns Over Weaponization by North Korea [Yang Nak-kyu’s Defence Club]

North Korean Trash Balloons Land on Yongsan Presidential Office Building, Concerns Over Weaponization, ‘There is growing concern that North Korea, which has been frequently launching trash balloons, is preparing for weaponization. The recent landing of a trash balloon within the Yongsan Presidential Office building highlights the need to be prepared for potential weaponization.’,
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[Image Source=Yonhap News],
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, ‘On the 24th, a trash balloon sent by North Korea fell within the Yongsan Presidential Office building. The Presidential Security Service announced to the media that they identified scattered trash debris from a North Korean trash balloon that burst in the air during the early morning hours over the Yongsan area. They noted that the objects were collected after safety inspections confirmed no risk or contamination, and ongoing monitoring is being conducted in cooperation with the Joint Chiefs of Staff.’,
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, ‘It was confirmed that the balloons that fell around the Yongsan area contained various flyers with crude criticisms of President Yoon Suk-yeol and his wife, Kim Keon-hee. This marks the first time North Korea has launched trash balloons containing flyers directly criticizing the South Korean presidential couple. North Korea has been persistently launching trash balloons filled with waste, with another such balloon falling in the Yongsan Presidential Office on July 24.’,
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, ‘The issue is that North Korea’s trash balloons are becoming increasingly sophisticated. Some of the balloons sent south have been equipped with GPS transmitters, allowing the North to track the balloons’ movements in real time and potentially drop payloads at specific locations. Although financial constraints may prevent North Korea from equipping all balloons with GPS devices, they have reportedly been using some to gather experience and data.’,
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, ‘Concerns are being raised that the North Korean military could use balloons capable of location tracking for intentional aggression. The current method identified by the military involves a timer that activates a heating element, burning the trash-filled payload bag after a pre-set time.’,
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, ‘However, if North Korea advances to remotely detonating balloons once they reach a specific airspace using GPS, this would represent a shift towards intentional weaponization, changing the current situation significantly.’,
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, ‘There were also reports from foreign media suggesting that North Korean soldiers imparted the military application of “balloons” to Russian forces. According to the Ukrainian outlet Ukrainska Pravda, 18 North Korean soldiers who had escaped from a training post in Russia’s Kursk Oblast, about 7 km from the Ukrainian border, were apprehended in Russia’s Bryansk Oblast, around 60 km from their escape point. The North Korean soldiers allegedly shared military application methods of “balloons” with Russian forces, who in turn, shared modern infantry combat techniques.’,
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, ‘If these reports are true, it indicates that North Korea might have been using South Korea as a testing ground to enhance the performance of their trash balloons ahead of potential deployment to Russia. Some experts predict that military balloons, which are cheaper than drones, could be used to overwhelm Ukrainian air defenses.’,
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, ‘A military official stated, “We are also conducting additional analysis on the potential for North Korea to select specific timings and locations for dispersing trash in this manner.”’,
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