The Ministry of National Defense will rapidly secure more than 20,000 low-cost drones, considered a "game changer" in modern warfare, and push for the early deployment of a Korean-style long-range suicide drone (K-LUCAS). A law will also be enacted to swiftly introduce advanced capabilities such as artificial intelligence (AI) and robotics.
The Ministry of National Defense announced its drone and counter-drone development policy on Wednesday. Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said, "We will rapidly secure more than 20,000 expendable, low-cost drones, including short-range reconnaissance drones and small suicide drones, and push for the deployment of K-LUCAS for strategic strikes and the neutralization of enemy air defense networks."
The military plans to begin full-scale procurement of low-cost, expendable drones from 2028, securing some 20,000 by 2030. K-LUCAS was originally scheduled for deployment in the mid-2030s, but through rapid development it will be deployed early, before 2030.
K-LUCAS is the Korean version of LUCAS, a low-cost unmanned combat attack system that the United States reverse-engineered from Iran's Shahed drone and deployed in combat against Iran. It flies toward a target and strikes by direct collision or by dropping onto it. While it plays a role similar to a guided missile, it has the advantage of relatively lower cost. The U.S. LUCAS costs about $35,000 (approximately 55 million won) per unit.
In parallel, the military will secure next-generation drone capabilities such as AI swarm drones to prepare for future battlefields. In the short term, it plans to deploy counter-drone systems in forward contact areas and response systems for small unmanned aircraft, and to field proven commercial equipment starting next year. A Defense Ministry official cited examples of commercial counter-drone equipment, including portable anti-drone guns that block radio waves, wearable detection and jamming devices worn like vests, and vehicle-mounted detection and jamming devices.
Minister Ahn explained, "In the mid-to-long term, we will develop and deploy directed-energy weapons such as lasers and high-power microwaves that require advanced technology," adding, "We will also secure various means, such as low-cost interceptor drones, at an early stage to respond to the threat of low-cost drones."
Beyond drones, the government will also establish the legal foundation to swiftly introduce advanced capabilities such as AI and robotics. At a separately held "Strategy Meeting for Fostering Future New Security Innovation Companies" at the presidential office that day, the Ministry of National Defense announced it would enact a "Defense Advanced Capabilities Project Act" to enable rapid acquisition of advanced capabilities that face fast-changing technology.
It also plans to use programs such as "unit-specific innovation labs" and the "Defense AX Sprint Project" to allow the military to take the lead in demonstrating and applying the latest private-sector technologies.
A plan was also unveiled to build a defense advanced-capability ecosystem by pursuing, together with the private sector, the procurement of 60,000 training drones to cultivate 500,000 drone warriors and the development of "K-Maven," an AI operating system tailored to the Korean military. When purchasing commercial small drones for military use, the military will support a stable drone supply chain and rapid acquisition conditions through a "K-BLUE UAS" certification system that pre-verifies supply chains, security and quality, as well as the standardization of core drone components.
Among these measures, the Drone Operations Command—created during the Yoon Suk-yeol administration and implicated in the December 3 emergency martial law over the "Pyongyang drone" incident—will be reorganized into the "Defense Drone Headquarters." After transferring its operational planning and execution duties, which it had carried out like the staff of a general unit, to each branch of the military, it will be transformed into a policy organization dedicated to concept development and requirement identification in the drone and counter-drone fields, acquisition support in coordination with each military branch, and external cooperation. A Defense Ministry official explained, "We are evolving and reorganizing the missions and functions of the Drone Command—which was hastily created without much deliberation—to fit its original role."
