South Korea will rapidly expand its drone and counter-drone capabilities to counter North Korea, including by training 500,000 “drone warriors” and distributing tens of thousands of unmanned systems across frontline units, the Defence Ministry said on Friday.
Expansion Plans
The military also plans to produce 110,000 drones by 2029 for deployment across the army, navy, air force and marines, aiming to make drones a standard item for individual soldiers. Defence Minister Ahn Gyu-back said Seoul would rely on 100% domestically produced components rather than Chinese parts in building the systems, in response to security concerns.
The announcement comes as both Koreas accelerate efforts to build drone capabilities, shaped by lessons from conflicts in Ukraine and the Middle East, where unmanned systems have emerged as game changers on the battlefield. South Korea’s plan includes expanding counter-drone systems such as laser and high-power microwave weapons, and shifting operations so each service can conduct surveillance and strike missions using drones rather than relying on a centralised command.
Original reporting: Appleton, WI News Feed (HLL/CB) — read the source article.
