South Korea plans to train entire 500,000-member military as drone warriors
Tags AI · Infrastructure
South Korea's Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-back announced on June 26 that the country's nearly half-million-strong military will train every member to operate drones as a 'universal combat tool' akin to a second personal weapon. The initiative, inspired by drone warfare in Ukraine and the Middle East, includes reorganizing South Korea's drone command structure to focus on commercial technology partnerships and deploying counter-drone lasers and microwave weapons.
Technical significance
This represents the first national-scale program to make drone operation a universal military skill rather than a specialist role. The integration of commercial drone technology procurement with military restructuring signals a blurring boundary between consumer tech industry and defense applications, with implications for dual-use technology export controls and the global drone supply chain.