"North Claims Drone Infiltration... Calls for Joint Inter-Korean Investigation and Opportunity in Disguise"

"Recurrence Must Be Prevented Through Thorough Investigation"

While the Ministry of National Defense has denied North Korea's claim that a South Korean drone infiltrated its airspace, stating that there was no drone operation, voices within the political sphere are calling for a joint inter-Korean investigation to prevent recurrence.

On January 12, Park Jie-won, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on CBS Radio's "Park Sung-tae's News Show," "I trust the announcements from both sides. I do not believe North Korea would fabricate a story about a drone not coming from the South, and I also trust, as Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek said, that our military did not send one."

He added, "Since North Korea is also investigating drone debris and other evidence, if we cooperate and conduct a joint investigation, it will help prevent recurrence and eliminate misunderstandings between the two sides." He continued, "These days, drones are widely used by civilians, so it is possible that it was operated by a civilian as our government suspects. If, as Kim Yo-jong, Vice Department Director of the Workers' Party of Korea, claimed, a drone was indeed sent, then it is undeniable that there was an airspace intrusion. To prevent recurrence through a thorough investigation, a joint inter-Korean investigation is most necessary."

Park also argued that this incident should be turned into an "opportunity in disguise." He said, "A joint inter-Korean investigation is needed to ensure peace and prevent conflict. Through this, the two Koreas could also naturally create opportunities for contact. Let us turn this into an opportunity in disguise."

On the 11th, citizens are watching news about North Korea's drone airspace intrusion claim in the Seoul Station waiting room. Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Cho Yong-geun, a professor at Kyungnam University and former Director of North Korea Policy at the Ministry of National Defense, also raised the possibility that a civilian organization may have flown the drone.

On MBC Radio's "Kim Jong-bae's Focus," Professor Cho said, "For military drones, anti-jamming devices are extremely important. These drones must not fall during flight, so jamming prevention devices are essential, and only the latest transceivers are used to ensure long-distance operation." He continued, "Looking at the components revealed on page 2 of Rodong Sinmun, most appear to be low-cost Chinese equipment, and the image quality is worse than that of Google satellite imagery," adding, "Such photos would never be used by the military, so it is virtually certain that the drone was sent by a civilian organization."

He also pointed out that there are many drone enthusiast clubs in South Korea, and that drones have consistently caused issues not only near the border but also around rear military bases. If a drone from a civilian drone club crossed the border, we may bear some responsibility for not detecting it, so it is difficult to say that our military is entirely without fault.

Professor Cho stated, "Since a joint military-police investigation team has decided to look into the matter, we must identify who operated the drone and determine their exact intentions. Given that the same group may have been responsible, I believe it will not be too difficult to find them." He continued, "Now that leaflet drops and loudspeaker broadcasts toward North Korea have been suspended, if a civilian organization is attempting something else toward the North, as the president mentioned, it is a serious crime," emphasizing, "We must find those responsible and ensure it does not happen again."