North Korea declared on Sunday its halt to the practice of sending balloons carrying refuse across the border to South Korea, with a warning of resumption should anti-North Korean leaflets resume from the South.

According to North Korean Vice Minister of Defense Kim Kang Il, the decision stemmed from the unpleasant experience of South Korea collecting 15 tons of trash sent by Pyongyang via 3,500 balloons. South Korea's National Security Council, under President Yoon Suk Yeol's office, convened to address the matter, condemning the action as provocative.

Seoul expressed readiness to employ countermeasures, including loudspeaker propaganda directed at the North. While South Korea suspended such blasts in 2018 following a summit with Kim Jong Un, they did not rule out their resumption.

The two Koreas, technically still at war since the Korean War armistice, often engage in tense exchanges. North Korea's balloons were retaliation against a propaganda campaign by defectors and activists in South Korea, who send inflatables containing anti-Pyongyang materials across the border.

The North's balloons, filled with garbage like cigarette butts and paper waste, were discovered in Seoul, prompting South Korean military response and collection efforts. Defence Minister Shin Won-sik reaffirmed South Korea's stance against such actions during a conference with US Defense Secretary Austin Lloyd in Singapore.

Emergency alerts were issued in affected areas, urging caution around the balloons.