NK to Ban Traffic In and Out of Kaesong Complex

North Korea warned Wednesday that it will block South Korean personnel and vehicles at the inter-Korean joint industrial complex in Kaesong if Seoul resumes its propaganda broadcasts along the border.

Traffic to and from the complex will likely be blocked soon since Seoul reaffirmed its plan to install loudspeakers along the border after the warning.

In a notice to South Korea, the chief North Korean delegate to inter-Korean general-level talks said Wednesday that if Seoul installs the loudspeakers, Pyongyang will block South Korean personnel and vehicles from entering or leaving the complex.

The North threatened “military measures” to destroy the loudspeakers if they are installed, saying the resumption of psychological warfare will constitute a military provocation against it.

South Korean Defense Minister Kim Tae-young told advisers from the defense, foreign and unification ministries that the loudspeakers will be installed in South Korean territory three kilometers south of wire fences along the border.

If the North fires at the loudspeakers, Kim said the South Korean military will apply the rules of proportion in responding to the attacks based on the rules of engagement. The rules of proportion are a principle banning a country from military action or weapons use leading to destruction and killing far exceeding the level of the damage sustained.

Kim also said such a response will not cause a full-blown war as the South’s rules of engagement aim to prevent conflict from escalating. The North is capable of striking the loudspeakers, he added, though its accuracy is unknown.

kyle@donga.com srkim@donga.com