ROK president warns civilian drone incursion into DPRK would be grave criminal offense

SEOUL - Republic of Korea President Lee Jae-myung on Saturday ordered a joint military-police probe into the possibility that the drone cited in the "drone infiltration" claim by the Democratic People's Republic of Korea (DPRK) was civilian-operated, warning that if confirmed, it would constitute a grave criminal offense, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Citing the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, Yonhap said Lee issued the instruction in response to the possibility of a civilian-operated drone, warning that if confirmed, it would constitute a grave crime threatening peace on the Korean Peninsula and national security.

Earlier on Saturday, ROK Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-baek said allegations that ROK drones had violated the DPRK's airspace were "absolutely untrue," noting that the drone shown in photos released by the DPRK was not a model operated by the ROK military.

The ROK defense ministry also said it had confirmed that the military did not operate drones on the dates cited by the DPRK.

According to the Korean Central News Agency on Saturday, a spokesperson for the General Staff of the Korean People's Army said in a statement released on Friday that ROK had again sent drones into the DPRK's airspace at the beginning of the new year.