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North Korean spy drones entered South Korea’s airspace

2023.01.23 13:41:00 Lim, Jiseop
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[A North Korean Parade Preparation. Photo Credit to Pixabay]


On December 26th, North Korean spy drones were spotted by South Korean authorities patrolling the areas near Seoul. 

Reports from the South Korean government formally apologized to the public for their failure to shoot down these drones.

North Korea had been estimated to be in possession of over a thousand of these drones ready for its military strength. 

This report brought great concern to the South Korean public for its lack of military capabilities, but also garnered attention to the unexpected strength of the North Korean military. 

Despite their isolationist policies preventing them from ranking in the top poorest countries, it has been estimated that over 60% of the North Korean population is under the poverty line.

With a population of 25 million people, these statistics point to the fact that an overwhelming majority of the country is in poverty; however, they are still able to uphold and maintain a powerful military force.

The main driving factor for such capability is the Songun political theory. 

The Songun politics is a driving force for contemporary North Korean economic distributions as the majority of North Korean economic outputs and financial aid support its military forces, the Korean People's Army. 

According to the “The Songun-Based Revolutionary Line is a Great Revolutionary Line of our era and an Ever-Victorious Banner of our Revolution,” a doctrine written by Kim Jong Il in 2003, the Songun political doctrine outlines that the top priority of both economic and social goals should be shifted towards military affairs. 

All aspects of social life were to be shifted towards military preparations under the Songun policies. 

Despite the state of poverty and the low standard of living of its citizens, North Korea continues to fund its military through further research and developments, spending nearly  25% of its earnings.

Just in 2020, North Korea introduced its new modern battle tanks, and missiles amidst the Covid pandemic when the vast majority of their population was starving. 

In 2022, the illegal trespassing of North Korea’s spy drones and the report of the possibility of a thousand drones being ready at disposal can be correlated to the expansive military development of the Songun policy. 

The general South Korean outlook on North Korea as a nation of outdated equipment contributed to the surprise of their military capabilities, highlighting the South Korean military’s unreadiness for such potential instances. 

Despite the illegal trespassing, North Korea has faced little to no consequences from the international stage except a few stern warnings.

The South Korean government has been too distracted and in conflict with the Defense Ministry and the National Intelligence Service regarding where and how much the drone was able to spy on. 

Taking into consideration the internal turmoils in South Korea, the South Korean government has yet to take any public action against North Korea, and only tensions have escalated. 

Lim, Jiseop / Grade 11
Fayston Preparatory School