South Korea plans military drone unit to monitor North

South Korea's President has called for stronger air defences and high-tech stealth drones while the military apologised for failing to shoot down North Korean drones that crossed the border for the first time in five years.

The South Korean military scrambled warplanes and attack helicopters on Monday, but they failed to bring down any of the North Korean drones that flew back home or disappeared from South Korean radars.

It raised serious questions about South Korea's air defence network at a time when tensions remain high over North Korea's run of missile tests this year.

• North Korea test fires ballistic missile capable of reaching Japan
• North Korea fire missile with ability to strike ‘entire mainland United States’
• North Korea says missile tests were practice for attacks on South and US

On Tuesday, the military again launched fighter jets and attack helicopters after spotting suspicious flight paths at a frontline area.

A local county office sent emergency text messages notifying residents of a new batch of North Korean drones, but the military later said it was a flock of birds.

"We have a plan to create a military drone unit tasked with monitoring key military facilities in North Korea. But we'll advance the establishment of the drone unit as soon as possible because of yesterday's incident," President Yoon Suk Yeol said during a regular Cabinet Council meeting.

"We'll also introduce state-of-the art stealth drones and bolster our surveillance capability."

He said South Korea's military needs more intensive readiness and exercises to cope with threats posed by Pyongyang's drones.

Lieutenant General Kang Shin Chul, Chief Director of Operation at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, said in a televised statement that the military was sorry about its failure to shoot down the North Korean drones and for causing public concern.

He acknowledged South Korea lacks capacities to detect and strike small surveillance drones with a wingspan of less than three metres, though it has assets to spot and bring down bigger combat drones.

Lt Gen Kang said South Korea will establish drone units with various capacities and deploy military assets to shoot down enemy drones.