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South Korea Denies North's Drone Infiltration Claims, Offers Joint Probe

South Korea's Defence Minister has firmly denied North Korea's allegations that South Korean drones infiltrated its airspace in September and January. Minister Ahn Gyu-back stated the drones pictured by the North are not models operated by the South Korean military and that no flight operations occurred on the dates Pyongyang specified. He suggested the two Koreas conduct a joint investigation into the incidents. The South Korean defence ministry confirmed President Lee Jae Myung has ordered a thorough investigation, which verified the military did not operate drones on the claimed dates.

Key Points: South Korea Denies North's Drone Claims, Offers Joint Investigation

  • South Korea denies drone incursions
  • North Korea threatened "high price"
  • Drones not South Korean military models
  • Minister suggests joint investigation
  • President ordered thorough probe
2 min read

South Korean defence minister denies North Korea's drone infiltration claims

South Korean Defence Minister refutes North Korea's claims of southern drone incursions, stating the military did not operate drones on the alleged dates.

"How could that be possible when the nightmare of martial law still feels like it was just yesterday? - Ahn Gyu-back"

Seoul, Jan 10

South Korea's defence chief on Saturday denied North Korea's claims that its drones infiltrated into the North in September last year and earlier this week, saying the drones in question were not models operated by the South Korean military.

North Korea claimed earlier in the day that South Korea infringed on its sovereignty with drone incursions, saying that Seoul should be ready to "pay a high price" for what it called a provocation.

In response to an inquiry by Yonhap News Agency, Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back said the North's alleged claims were "absolutely not true," noting the photos of the drones released by the North were not of models owned by the South Korean military.

"How could that be possible when the nightmare of martial law still feels like it was just yesterday?" Ahn said, adding the drone operation command, the Army's ground operations command and the Marine Corps headquarters had not conducted flight operations on the dates claimed by North Korea.

Ahn also suggested the matter could be jointly investigated by South and North Korea, Yonhap news agency reported.

In a statement issued by the spokesperson of the General Staff of the Korean People's Army, North Korea claimed South Korea's drones had infiltrated into the North on two occasions, while denouncing Seoul as "the most hostile" enemy.

On January 4, North Korea's military captured and tracked an air target moving northward from the sky over South Korea's Ganghwa County, Incheon, and struck the drone with special electronic warfare assets, forcing it to fall in Muksan-ri near the North's border city of Kaesong, according to the Korean Central News Agency (KCNA).

It also claimed that on September 27, a drone, which took off from the South's border city of Paju, fell into Jangphung County, Kaesong, after being struck down by the North's electronic means. The drone was returning after infiltrating the sky above Phyongsan County, North Hwanghae Province.

The defence ministry said South Korean President Lee Jae Myung had ordered a 'thorough' investigation into the matter, with relevant agencies verifying the details of the case.

"It has been confirmed that the South Korean military had not operated any drones on the dates claimed by North Korea," the ministry said in a notice.

- IANS

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Reader Comments

P
Priyanka N
Watching this from India, it feels like a familiar playbook of creating border incidents for domestic consumption. Hope cooler heads prevail and diplomacy wins. The last thing Asia needs is another flashpoint. 🙏
A
Aman W
The minister's point about the "nightmare of martial law" is powerful. South Korea has built a strong democracy. It's unlikely they'd risk it for a pointless drone incursion. North's claims seem fabricated.
S
Sarah B
Interesting to see the technical detail - the drones not matching South Korean military models. That's a solid rebuttal. Makes you wonder where those drones actually came from. A third party maybe?
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Vikram M
As an Indian, I understand the sensitivity of border claims. The offer of a joint investigation is a mature move by the South. If North Korea is confident, they should accept it. Truth will come out.
K
Karan T
While South Korea's stance seems reasonable, I hope their intelligence agencies are fully alert. False flag operations are a real threat in such volatile regions. Stay vigilant!

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