South Korea ‘lacks’ military readiness: President

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The readiness status of the South Korean military had been “greatly lacking,” as proven by a latest incursion by North Korean drones, President Yoon Suk-yeol assessed during a cabinet meeting.

Seoul needs to enhance its capabilities after the Monday incident, the South Korean leader told ministers on Tuesday, according to Yonhap. He claimed his country had realized “the danger of a North Korea policy that relied on North Korea’s good intentions and military agreements.”

The readiness status of the South Korean military had been “greatly lacking,” as proven by a latest incursion by North Korean drones, President Yoon Suk-yeol assessed during a cabinet meeting.

On Monday, South Korean news agency News1 reported that five drones crossed the Korean military demarcation line and "violated" South Korean airspace. The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff described the drones as maximum two meters in size.

According to the report, one of them had flown to the northern neighborhoods of Seoul, while the remaining four flew across the area of Ganghwa Island.

President Yoon vowed to speed up the establishment of a drone unit intended to carry out reconnaissance operations against the North. It will be moved forward “as much as possible,” he pledged.

“We will strengthen our surveillance and reconnaissance capabilities by introducing advanced stealth drones," Yoon said.

Last week, Seoul announced some 20 military exercises to be conducted jointly with Washington in the first six months of 2023.

The two countries will focus on “crafting of realistic training scenarios in light of advancing North Korean nuclear and missile threats,” the Defense Ministry stated.

Earlier this month, Pyongyang announced testing equipment for a spy satellite during the launch of ballistic missiles. It released grainy images of parts of South Korea and claimed it would soon be ready to place a fully operational satellite into orbit.