Overview
- The Army said at a headquarters briefing it is assessing whether to field suicide, or one-way attack, and reconnaissance drones down to battalion level and below.
- The Defense Ministry is funding a push to train 500,000 “drone warriors” this year with about 25 billion won, and the Army plans roughly 11,000 training drones in 2026 and more than 50,000 by 2029 to equip each squad.
- Army Chief of Staff Gen. Kim Gyu-ha said drones should be as easy for soldiers to use as their personal rifles, with qualifications added across existing branches rather than through a new drone corps.
- The service plans pilot units for an advanced manned–unmanned force model by 2027 and expects key drone and robot systems to be practical around 2028 to 2032, with a full transformation targeted for 2040.
- Leaders also outlined AI border surveillance that would let front-line general outposts cut troops from about 22,000 to 6,000 by 2040, though they said reductions will not happen in the short term.