Allegations of Creating Grounds for Martial Law
Commander Kim Completely Denies Charges
The special prosecutor's team investigating the insurrection case has summoned Major General Kim Yongdae, Commander of the Drone Operations Command, in connection with allegations of deploying unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) over Pyongyang.
According to legal sources on July 17, the special prosecutor's team called in Commander Kim for questioning as a suspect on this day.
The team is investigating whether former President Yoon Sukyeol directly ordered the Drone Operations Command to deploy UAVs over Pyongyang around October last year in order to create grounds for declaring martial law, and whether the military was systematically involved in covering up the operation.
It is reported that the team has obtained a recording of an active-duty officer stating that, around October last year, former President Yoon bypassed the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff and directly instructed the Drone Operations Command to prepare for the UAV deployment over Pyongyang.
The recording reportedly includes statements such as "Commander Kim said it was an order from 'V' (the President)," "He said it should be done without the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff knowing," and "Leaflets also had to be dispersed, and there was a need to deliberately expose the drones to create a sense of anxiety."
There are also allegations that, between October and November last year, the Drone Operations Command recommended 25 individuals?including the Director of Information Operations, who was involved in the UAV operation?as candidates for commendations in the name of the Minister of National Defense, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and the Chief of Operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
The special prosecutor's team is also looking into allegations that the Drone Operations Command, despite knowing the possibility of a crash, deliberately attached leaflet containers to modified UAVs in an attempt to provoke a response from North Korea.
Additionally, there are allegations that Commander Kim met with former President Yoon and former Minister of National Defense Kim Yonghyun at the presidential office in September last year. The special prosecutor's team plans to question Commander Kim about whether UAV operations were discussed during that meeting.
Commander Kim's side has argued that the UAV deployment operation over Pyongyang was carried out lawfully under the command of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and was unrelated to martial law.
Previously, on July 14, the special prosecutor's team conducted searches and seizures at 24 military-related facilities, including the Drone Operations Command, the Ministry of National Defense, and the Defense Counterintelligence Command.
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