President Lee Jae-myung said the military and police will form a joint investigation team over whether South Korea's drone intruded as North Korea claimed.
The Blue House said on the 10th in a notice to the press corps that, regarding the possibility of civilian drone operations, "If true, it is a serious crime that threatens peace on the Korean Peninsula and national security, so a joint investigation team should be formed to conduct a swift and stern probe."
North Korea claimed in a statement by the Spokesperson for the General Staff of the Korean People's Army that South Korea sent drones in September last year and on the 4th of this month. The ruling party's newspaper Rodong Sinmun also carried images of the drone and footage it filmed.
However, the Ministry of National Defense says the drone in question is not military and that there was no operation of a drone on the dates North Korea released. If North Korea's claim is true, it raises the possibility that a drone was sent from the civilian sector.
"According to the first-phase findings, our military did not possess the drone in question," the official said, adding, "There was also no operation of a drone during the relevant hours on the date North Korea released."