LOUDSPEAKERS
President Lee has reversed the stance of his hawkish predecessor Yoon Suk Yeol since taking power in June 2025, offering nuclear-armed Pyongyang talks without preconditions.
Lee said last month that Washington should seek a freeze, rather than the immediate elimination, of North Korea’s nuclear programme and offer sanctions relief in return.
US President Donald Trump’s recent overtures to Pyongyang have raised concerns that Seoul – Washington’s ally – could be sidelined in potential nuclear talks involving the North, which is now backed by Russia on top of China.
Resuming blaring K-pop music across the border – which the isolated North has long bristled at – has been floated by experts as a possible response.
But others say Seoul has few realistic options for retaliation without further burdening border residents already exposed to disruption and danger.
During previous bouts of inter-Korean tension, Pyongyang sent trash-carrying balloons across the border and blasted bizarre, unsettling noises over the boundary.
The intention of Lee’s speech could be aimed at establishing dialogue and discussing the issues, Yang Moo-jin, former president of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, told AFP.
“To have dialogue, there needs to be a channel of communication, and once communication takes place through that channel, these issues can be raised and measures taken to prevent a recurrence,” said Yang.
