“Try how troublesome and disgusting it is to get rid of Bbira,” said Kim Jung Un of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea (DPRK), indicating the beginning of revenge and retribution toward South Korea. Bbira, a misrepresentation of the word “leaflet,” is a paper note containing advertisements or inflammatory writings. As South Korean civic groups’ anti-Pyongyang sent such leaflets sent to the North, they became furious, regarding it as a severe disgrace of the regime and its supreme dignity. Along with the tension created by the Bbira, a cold wind has begun to blow in the international political relations between South and North Korea along with the United States (U.S.).

On June 22, the North Korean media reported in unison, that the preparations for the largest-ever leaflet campaign are nearing completion. According to the North Korean media Ro-dong Sinmun, 12 million anti-South leaflets have already been printed and 3,000 balloons, a means of spraying Bbira, have been prepared. Aimed at spreading leaflets to South Korea’s deep core or rear area, it is possible that the North Korean government will target metropolitan areas including Seoul by mobilizing various devices. 

A Habitual Attack of Bothersome Weapon
Currently, the propaganda leaflets are being used for political propaganda and military purposes in inter-Korean relations. The spread of Bbira in the Korean Peninsula began to be used as a psychological warfare tool between the United Nations (UN) and North Korean-Chinese forces during the Korean War. The propaganda leaflets were known as a powerful means of delivering information to the enemy rapidly. Since then, South and North Korea have been continuously sending Bbira to each other's territory. While it was used for triggering division and surrender of enemy forces during the wartime, it is now being used for political and ideological competition. According to the Korean Broadcasting System (KBS), in February 2016, the leaflets were found not only in residential areas, factories, trails but also in official buildings such as the National Assembly Library and Seoul Central District Prosecutor’s Office building. In October 2017, they were even found in front of the Cheong Wa Dae. 

The leaflet itself may not be a serious problem. However, there are cumbersome procedures for inspecting materials sent by North Korea. For instance, in 2016, the great expense was spent in order to conduct a thorough examination to check whether the soil contained in a large balloon sent by North Korea contained toxic substances or biological weapons. In addition, large amounts of leaflets are very complicated and bothersome to collect and deal with. If the anti-South Korean leaflets fly into the military demarcation line, the South Korean military will identify them immediately, but it is controversial whether the military should respond by firing them. It is also problematic as it becomes difficult to engage in leaflet blocking operations actively, since it can adversely help North Korea’s intention to raise tension. 

What the Leaflets and Explosion Imply
On April 27, the Ministry of National Defense of South Korea has reiterated that the North Korea’s release of propaganda leaflets does nothing to help establish peace on the Korean Peninsula. Bbira is a powerful psychological warfare weapon that strikes the sick spots of the North. However, in South Korea, the leaflets did not heavily influence the citizens, as they have always been allowed to freely express their opinion about the government and thus did not view them as damaging their dignity. 

Political and military tensions between the South and North Korea are escalating as North Korea is also reinstalling its loudspeaker broadcasting facilities that it demolished two years ago. According to the Yonhap News, critics pointed out that loudspeakers and leaflets are considered to be the main propaganda means of confrontation and slandering of the mutual system. In particular, North Korea's recent offensive measures against the South Korea such as the Bbira and the explosion of the Inter-Korean Joint Liaison Office, can be considered as a political pressure that South Korea break away from the South Korea-U.S. alliance and desert from sanctions against North Korea. According to Professor Nam Sung-wook (North and South Economic Research Institute), “Through physical pressure, North Korea constantly requires South Korea to loosen the string connected with the U.N. and the U.S., to ease political and military sanctions on them.” As such, the extreme performance of the office explosion can be seen as a pressure toward the South Korea to decide between North Korea and the U.S.

Broader Look on the Situation 
The political situation of Korean Peninsula cannot only be understood as a relation between the South and North Korea, but a contact point of continental forces such as China and oceanic forces such as the U.S. Therefore, the denuclearization negotiations between North Korea and the U.S. holds great significance. On February 28, 2019, North Korea-U.S. Summit was held in Hanoi, Vietnam with Kim Jung-un and U.S. President Donald Trump. “The U.S. insisted on a 'big deal' which involves complete denuclearization and complete sanctions against North Korea, while the North demanded a 'small deal,' partial denuclearization and sanctions. Due to such differences in their stance, cooperation was not smooth, the talks eventually having broken down,” mentioned Professor Nam. 

The matter of denuclearization and the ease of sanction may be a zero-sum game. North Korea wants the ease of international sanctions and restrictions toward themselves while other nations, including South Korea and the U.S., concern North Korea being passive in denuclearization, which might cause significant threat toward national security. Therefore it is necessary to strive to find out a point of compromise in Northeast Asian international politics. In order to do so, as Professor Nam pointed out, “Irrational provocation such as the explosion of the liaison office in which South Korean has done more than 15 billion won of input” should be refrained, as it only ends causing more and more distrust toward one another. Now, the Korean Peninsula is about to be ignited by the tension between South and North Korea along with several other countries. The world's eyes are focusing on what political and military options the agents will make in the nearby future.