North Korea warns of ‘terrible response’ if South sends more drones
North Korea threatened on Friday with a “terrible reaction” if it detects more drones from the South buzzing along the border.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has sought to repair ties with North Korea since taking office last year and has criticized his predecessor for allegedly sending drones to distribute propaganda to Pyongyang.
But North Korea claimed to have shot down a surveillance plane just last month; this incident threatened to undermine Lee’s efforts to turn things around.
Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, warned that there would be serious consequences if the drones are not stopped.
“I warn in advance that the re-emergence of provocations such as violating North Korea’s inalienable sovereignty will definitely lead to a terrible reaction,” Kim said in a statement carried by Pyongyang’s official Korean Central News Agency. he said.
“We don’t care who is manipulating the drone infiltration of North Korea’s airspace and whether it is an individual or a civilian organization,” he added, using the abbreviation of North Korea’s official name.
Seoul initially denied any official involvement in the January drone strike, with officials claiming it was the work of civilians.
But a joint military-police task force announced earlier this week that it was investigating three active-duty soldiers and a spy agency employee in an effort to “establish the full truth.”
Seoul’s unification minister Chung Dong-young expressed “deep regret” earlier this week.
Any government intervention in January’s drone strike would run counter to Lee’s efforts to de-escalate tensions with Pyongyang.
Chung had previously suggested that the drone may have been the work of government employees still loyal to former radical leader Yoon Suk Yeol.
Kim Yo Jong said Chung’s conciliatory words were “a very reasonable behavior.”
-‘Important targets’-
Yang Moo-jin, former president of the University of North Korean Studies, told AFP that Kim Yo Jong’s statement suggested that Pyongyang was “closely monitoring the latest developments on the South Korean side”.
The North Korean military shot down a drone carrying “surveillance equipment” in early January, according to a statement published by state-run KCNA.
Photos showed the wreckage of a winged vehicle scattered on the ground, next to a collection of gray and blue components that purportedly contained cameras.
A military spokesman said at the time that the drone stored images of “important targets”, including border areas.
South Korea’s disgraced former president Yoon Suk Yeol was accused of using drones to distribute propaganda leaflets to North Korea in 2024.
Lee has vowed to repair ties with North Korea by eliminating such provocations and even suggested a rare apology might be necessary.
A UN Security Council committee recently approved exemptions allowing new flows of food and medicine into North Korea.
Analysts said this could kick off efforts to draw Pyongyang into nuclear talks with US President Donald Trump.
North Korea is preparing to hold a landmark party congress at the end of February.
The political spectacle, usually held every five years, will reveal the country’s foreign policy, war planning and nuclear ambitions over the next five years.
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