SEOUL, South Korea — On Sunday, North Korea announced that it had put its front-line military units on alert, ready to engage South Korea, escalating tensions in the ongoing rivalry. This response comes amidst accusations against South Korea for allegedly flying drones over the capital city of Pyongyang. The South Korean government has not confirmed these drone operations but warned it would take strong action against North Korea if the safety of its citizens were jeopardized.

The North Korean government accused its southern neighbor of deploying drones to drop propaganda materials over Pyongyang. In light of this accusation, North Korea threatened to retaliate with military force should a similar incident occur again. In a statement issued by the country’s Defense Ministry on Sunday, it was revealed that an initial operation order had been given to artillery and other units stationed near the South Korean border, instructing them to be fully prepared to open fire.

An unnamed spokesperson from the Defense Ministry indicated that the North Korean military had directed relevant units to prepare for scenarios that might involve launching immediate strikes against unspecified targets if South Korea were to send drones across the border again. The statement emphasized that “serious military tensions are currently present on the Korean Peninsula” as a consequence of the alleged drone incursions from the South. Further heightening the rhetoric, the spokesperson warned that the entirety of South Korea could become “piles of ashes” as a result of a powerful strike from the North.

Relations between the two Koreas have been fraught since diplomatic efforts led by the United States to dissolve North Korea’s nuclear arsenal collapsed in 2019. Since that failure, North Korea has aggressively sought to enhance its nuclear capabilities and continues to issue threats against both South Korea and the U.S. However, analysts believe a large-scale attack from North Korea is improbable due to the superiority of the combined military forces of the U.S. and South Korea.

Observers speculate that North Korea may choose to escalate tensions as a strategic move ahead of next month’s U.S. presidential election, aiming to gain an advantage in future diplomatic engagements with American officials. Since May, North Korea has retaliated by sending thousands of balloons laden with waste materials into South Korea, in response to activists from the South who have launched their own balloons bearing anti-North propaganda.

In reaction to North Korea’s balloon offensive, South Korea’s military has revived its use of loudspeakers along the border, broadcasting propaganda, including K-pop music, into North Korean territory. North Korea remains highly sensitive to any external critique of its authoritarian regime and the lineage of its leadership under Kim Jong Un.