Defense Ministry clarifies role of new drone command

South Korea’s Defense Ministry on Tuesday issued a decree detailing the duties of a new drone operations command ahead of its planned launch in September amid efforts to counter potential North Korean unmanned aerial vehicle infiltrations.

A South Korean Army Apache helicopter flies above Goyang, Gyeonggi on May 25 during an anti-drone defensive exercise. [YONHAP]

South Korea’s Defense Ministry on Tuesday issued a decree detailing the duties of the military’s new drone operations command ahead of its planned launch in September amid efforts to counter potential North Korean unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) infiltrations.

The ministry promulgated the decree after a bill authorizing the establishment of the command was approved by the Cabinet last week.

The new military branch is one of several South Korean countermeasures adopted in response to the incursion of five North Korean drones that crossed the inter-Korean border in December last year.

One of the North Korean drones is believed to have infiltrated a no-fly zone over the presidential office in central Seoul.

Under the decree, the new command will be tasked with “responding to enemy UAVs through surveillance, reconnaissance and potential strike operations, among other military actions.”

The command’s focus on “responding” to unmanned enemy assets is to make it clear that the new branch will not act without provocation, according to a government official who spoke on condition of anonymity to reporters.

“Concerns were raised both within and outside the military that drones could be mistakenly construed as solely offensive means, so [language clarifying] the defensive nature of their missions was added [to the decree],” the official said.

The Defense Ministry said the new command “is expected to use drones to carry out strategic and operational missions systematically and efficiently across shared battle domains and lead the combat development of drone operations.”

Earlier, an unnamed South Korean military official told reporters that the new command will operate under an aggressive counter-drone doctrine that would see the South send 10 or more UAVs to Pyongyang for every North Korean drone that enters the South.

The military plans to acquire 100 small UAVs with a flight range that can cover the whole of the North by the end of this month, according to a source cited by Yonhap News Agency.

Each drone will be equipped with a GPS-based navigational instrument, a self-piloting system that kicks in when it flies beyond the range of South Korean communications signals, and an automated information deletion program if it crashes within North Korea.

The military has also already purchased drones powered by solar energy capable of flying at high altitudes for longer-term reconnaissance operations.

The North Korean drone incursions in December revealed the limitations of the South’s aerial defenses and detection systems against the North’s small UAVs, which were able to evade interception despite South Korean efforts to shoot them down.

They also raised concerns that the North would be able to carry out strike operations against key facilities in the South in the event of hostilities.

In response, South Korea has moved to implement countermeasures against future drone infiltration attempts, such as regular air defense exercises and procuring systems that jam drone signals.

The country is also working to complete the development of a miniature stealth drone that can evade North Korean military radar entirely and follow a pre-programmed flight path before automatically returning to its base, military sources said.

According to Defense Ministry spokesman Jeon Ha-kyu, the location of the new command is yet to be decided, but the former base of the Army’s now-disbanded 6th Engineering Brigade in Pocheon, Gyeonggi, is currently under consideration.

Jeon said the ministry would consult with local residents before proceeding to establish a base in the area.

BY MICHAEL LEE [lee.junhyuk@joongang.co.kr]