South Korea’s military will increase the number of its drones by double or more by 2026 to better respond to North Korea’s drone threats, the presidential office said Thursday.

The plan was discussed during the fourth meeting of the presidential defense innovation committee, which met to discuss ways to strengthen the military’s drone power and maximize existing fighting capabilities.

Under the plan, the government will diversify its procurement of drones by pushing to more quickly acquire commercial drones and accelerating the weaponization of research and development drones, and increase the relevant budget spending.

“By doing so, our military will secure at least double the number of drones compared to the current number by 2026 and drastically strengthen our readiness posture against North Korea’s drone threats,” the presidential office said in a press release.

The military has sought to boost its anti-drone capabilities after North Korea sent five drones into South Korean airspace in December 2022, i
ncluding one that flew over northern parts of Seoul.

During the meeting, which was led by National Security Adviser Chang Ho-jin, the government also outlined measures to maximize the use of existing weapons capabilities.

The measures include increasing spending on enhancing the performance of weapons systems, from 1 percent of overall spending on improving defense capability to 5 percent.

The presidential defense innovation committee was established under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration to support its goal of a stronger military built on cutting-edge technologies.

It is made up of 11 members, with the president as chair and eight civilians, including former Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin.

Source: Yonhap News Agency