Please ensure Javascript is enabled for purposes of website accessibility
S. Korea Launches Jets, Fires Shots After North Flies Drones
gvw_ap_news
By Associated Press
Published 2 years ago on
December 27, 2022

Share

South Korea’s military fired warning shots, scrambled fighter jets and flew surveillance assets across the heavily fortified border with North Korea on Monday, after North Korean drones violated its airspace for the first time in five years in a fresh escalation of tensions.

South Korea’s military detected five drones from North Korea crossing the border, and one traveled as far as the northern part of the South Korean capital region, which is about an hour’s drive away, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said.

The military responded by firing warning shots and launching fighter jets and attack helicopters, according to the Defense Ministry.

There were no immediate reports of civilian damage on the ground in South Korea. One of the North Korean drones returned to the North after three hours in South Korea, while the rest disappeared from South Korean military radars one after another, the Joint Chiefs said.

The North Korean drones and the swift response from the South came three days after the North fired two short-range ballistic missiles in the latest in its torrid run of weapons tests this year. Friday’s launches were seen as a protest of the South Korean-U.S. joint air drills that North Korea views as an invasion rehearsal.

One of the South Korean fighter jets scrambled on Monday, a KA-1 light attack plane, crashed during takeoff but its two pilots both ejected safely, defense officials said. They said they also requested civilian airports in and near Seoul to halt takeoffs temporarily.

South Korea also sent surveillance assets near and across the border to photograph key military facilities in North Korea as corresponding measures against the North Korean drone flights, the Joint Chiefs said. It didn’t elaborate, but some observers say that South Korea likely flew unmanned drones inside North Korean territory.

“Our military will thoroughly and resolutely respond to this kind of North Korean provocation,” Maj. Gen. Lee Seung-o, director of operations at the South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff, told reporters.

South Korea’s public confirmation of any reconnaissance activities inside North Korea is highly unusual and likely reflects a resolve by the conservative government led by President Yoon Suk Yeol to get tough on North Korean provocations. North Korea could respond with more fiery rhetoric or weapons tests or other provocation, some observers say.

It’s the first time for North Korean drones to enter South Korean airspace since 2017, when a suspected North Korean drone was found crashed in South Korea. South Korean military officials said at the time that the drone with a Sony-made camera photographed a U.S. missile defense system in South Korea.

North Korea has touted its drone program, and South Korean officials have previously said the North had about 300 drones. In 2014, several suspected North Korean drones equipped with Japanese-made cameras were found south of the border. Experts said they were low-tech but could be considered a potential security threat.

A White House National Security official said U.S. officials were “consulting closely with the (Republic of Korea) about the nature of this incursion.”

“We recognize the need of the ROK to protect its territorial integrity,” said the official, who was not authorized to be identified and commented on condition of anonymity. “The U.S. commitment to the defense of the Republic of Korea remains ironclad.”

Earlier this month, North Korea claimed to have performed major tests needed to acquire its first spy satellite and a more mobile intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the U.S. mainland. They were among high-tech weapons systems that North Korean leader Kim Jong Un has vowed to introduce along with multi-warheads, underwater-launched nuclear missiles, nuclear-powered submarines and hypersonic missiles.

Kim has also called for the development of reconnaissance drones capable of precision surveillance up to 310 miles deep into enemy territory. In 2013, he watched a drone attack drill on a simulated South Korean target, according to the North’s state media.

North Korea had earlier released low-resolution photos of South Korean cities as viewed from space, but some experts in South Korea said the images were too crude for surveillance purposes. Such assessments infuriated North Korea, with Kim’s powerful sister Kim Yo Jong issuing a series of derisive terms to insult unidentified South Korean experts and express her anger.

North Korea is to hold a key ruling Workers’ Party conference this week to review past policies and set policy goals. Some experts say that during the meeting, North Korea will likely reaffirm its push to bolster nuclear and missile arsenals to cope with what it calls hostile U.S. policies, such as U.S.-led international sanctions and its regular military training with South Korea.

North Korea would eventually use its boosted nuclear capability as a bargaining chip to win international recognition as a legitimate nuclear state, the relaxing of international sanctions and other concessions, analysts say.

RELATED TOPICS:

DON'T MISS

2 Rescued After Santa Cruz Wharf Partially Collapses Due to Heavy Surf From Major Pacific Storm

DON'T MISS

Spain Faces Threats of Terrorism and Unrest, US Warns in Travel Advisory

DON'T MISS

Bill Clinton Is Hospitalized With a Fever but in Good Spirits, Spokesperson Says

DON'T MISS

Media Relations Expert Leaves City Hall for Valley Children’s Hospital

DON'T MISS

Amar Augillard Departs the Fresno State Basketball Team

DON'T MISS

Former Bulldog QB Mikey Keene Commits to Michigan

DON'T MISS

Thunderstorms on Christmas Eve? They’re in the Fresno Forecast

DON'T MISS

SE Fresno Voters Have Their Pick of Familiar Candidates to Succeed Chavez

DON'T MISS

Fresno Residents Will Get an Extra Day to Put Out the Trash

DON'T MISS

Top Arab Diplomats, in Syria Visits, Aim to Build Ties With New Leadership

UP NEXT

Top Arab Diplomats, in Syria Visits, Aim to Build Ties With New Leadership

UP NEXT

Middle East Latest: Israeli Airstrikes on Gaza Kill at Least 20 People, Palestinian Medics Say

UP NEXT

Bethlehem Plans Another Somber Christmas Under the Shadow of War in Gaza

UP NEXT

Jeffrey Sachs Warns of Looming US War With Iran

UP NEXT

9-Year-Old Among 5 Killed in Christmas Market Attack in Germany

UP NEXT

White House Pushes to Find American Journalist Abducted in Syria

UP NEXT

Iran’s Rial Hits a Record Low, Battered by Regional Tensions and an Energy Crisis

UP NEXT

Middle East Latest: Israeli Strike in Gaza Kills at Least 8 From the Same Family, Palestinians Say

UP NEXT

Israel OKs Golan Heights Settlement Expansion Amid Syria Leadership Shift

UP NEXT

Canada’s Finance Minister Resigns as Trudeau Faces Biggest Test of His Political Career

Media Relations Expert Leaves City Hall for Valley Children’s Hospital

2 hours ago

Amar Augillard Departs the Fresno State Basketball Team

2 hours ago

Former Bulldog QB Mikey Keene Commits to Michigan

3 hours ago

Thunderstorms on Christmas Eve? They’re in the Fresno Forecast

3 hours ago

SE Fresno Voters Have Their Pick of Familiar Candidates to Succeed Chavez

3 hours ago

Fresno Residents Will Get an Extra Day to Put Out the Trash

3 hours ago

Top Arab Diplomats, in Syria Visits, Aim to Build Ties With New Leadership

4 hours ago

Middle East Latest: Israeli Airstrikes on Gaza Kill at Least 20 People, Palestinian Medics Say

4 hours ago

Tulare Man Shot in Face, Police Investigating Early Morning Incident

4 hours ago

Victims and Families React as Biden Spares the Lives of 37 Federal Death Row Inmates

5 hours ago

2 Rescued After Santa Cruz Wharf Partially Collapses Due to Heavy Surf From Major Pacific Storm

SANTA CRUZ, Calif. — Two people were rescued when a California pier under construction partially collapsed and fell into the ocean Monday as...

16 minutes ago

A closed wharf is seen in Santa Cruz, Calif., Monday, Dec. 23, 2024, after the pier partially collapsed and fell into the ocean. (AP/Martha Mendoza)
16 minutes ago

2 Rescued After Santa Cruz Wharf Partially Collapses Due to Heavy Surf From Major Pacific Storm

49 minutes ago

Spain Faces Threats of Terrorism and Unrest, US Warns in Travel Advisory

55 minutes ago

Bill Clinton Is Hospitalized With a Fever but in Good Spirits, Spokesperson Says

2 hours ago

Media Relations Expert Leaves City Hall for Valley Children’s Hospital

2 hours ago

Amar Augillard Departs the Fresno State Basketball Team

3 hours ago

Former Bulldog QB Mikey Keene Commits to Michigan

3 hours ago

Thunderstorms on Christmas Eve? They’re in the Fresno Forecast

3 hours ago

SE Fresno Voters Have Their Pick of Familiar Candidates to Succeed Chavez

Help continue the work that gets you the news that matters most.

Search

Send this to a friend