North Korea says it will stop sending trash-filled balloons after South Korea’s outcry

North Korea said on Sunday it would stop sending balloons filled with garbage to South Korea after the latter promised “unbearable” measures in retaliation.

North Korea’s Vice Defense Minister Kim Kang said Sunday that North Korea sent the balloons in retaliation for South Korea’s earlier leafleting, which often spreads messages critical of North Korea’s leaders to citizens living in authoritarian states with no access to outside news.

Kim said he was ready to resume sending the garbage balloons if South Korea resumed its anti-Pyongyang leaflet-dropping campaign in North Korea.

“we [Republic of Korea] “The people of the clan have fully experienced the discomfort and effort required to remove scattered paper waste,” Kim said in a statement carried by North Korean state media, according to the Associated Press.

Early Sunday, South Korea vowed to respond to the provocations with “unbearable” measures. According to the Associated Press, experts predict that it could launch loudspeaker broadcasts on the front lines aimed at North Korea. Experts predict that the broadcasts would be aimed at North Korean civilians, criticize the dictatorship’s human rights record, report world news and play K-pop songs.

South Korea’s military said it found more than 700 balloons sent by North Korea on Sunday, after finding 260 earlier this week. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the balloons were tied to fertilizer, waste paper and other trash. North Korea said it had sent 3,500 balloons loaded with 15 tons of waste paper.

South Korean officials said the “unbearable” retaliation was a response to the balloons as well as to suspected jamming of GPS signals in South Korea and North Korea’s mock nuclear attack on South Korea in recent days.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.