South Korea nearly shot down US drone near North border
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- South Korean military inspectors will visit the Army's 1st Corps on Friday to review the near-shootdown of an aircraft near the North Korea border, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said.
- The Joint Chiefs of Staff said the aircraft was detected Thursday in northern Gyeonggi province and was dealt with under standard operational procedures before being identified as a U.S. training drone.
- South Korean forces issued text alerts shortly after 2 p.m. urging frontline residents in Cheorwon's Civilian Control Zone to move to shelters before later confirming the situation was resolved.
- U.S. Forces Korea confirmed the aircraft belonged to the U.S. Marine Corps, was participating in a joint exercise, and said it was assessing the circumstances surrounding the incident.
- The near-shootdown comes days after residents near a U.S. military base in Pyeongtaek were briefly told to evacuate following a white phosphorus-related incident, prompting civic group calls for an investigation and an apology from the U.S. military.
Why it matters: The episode exposes how quickly South Korean forces escalate against unidentified aircraft along the DMZ, prompting a formal JCS readiness review at the 1st Corps — notable given the border's persistent tensions and a separate recent U.S. military incident in Pyeongtaek that has already frayed local public trust.
