Overview

• South Korea’s military began removing roughly 20 fixed loudspeakers along the DMZ on Aug. 4 in a weeklong operation to reduce psychological warfare tactics.
• President Lee Jae Myung ordered the broadcast halt in June as part of a broader effort to rebuild trust and explore reviving inter-Korean agreements.
• The Defense Ministry affirmed that the dismantling will not compromise military readiness and noted there were no prior consultations with North Korea.
• Pyongyang has carried out maintenance on its own speakers but shown no sign of reciprocal removal, and Kim Yo Jong dismissed Seoul’s gesture as a miscalculation.
• Analysts say taking down the loudspeakers could pave the way for restoring the 2018 inter-Korean military pact that governs frontline conduct.