S. Korea deploying laser weapons vs N. Korea’s drones

SEOUL—South Korea will deploy laser weapons to shoot down North Korean drones this year, becoming the world’s first country to deploy and operate such weapons in the military, the country’s arms procurement agency said on Thursday.

South Korea has called its laser program the “StarWars project.”

The drone-zapping laser weapons the South Korean military has developed with Hanwha Aerospace are effective and cheap, with 2,000 won ($1.45) per shot, but quiet and invisible, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (Dapa) said in a statement.

“Our country is becoming the first country in the world to deploy and operate laser weapons, and our military’s response capabilities on North Korea’s drone provocation will be further strengthened,” Dapa said, calling those weapons as a game changer in the future battlefield.

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Still at war

The laser weapons shoot down flying drones by burning down engines or other electric equipment in drones with beams of light for 10 to 20 seconds, a Dapa spokesperson explained.

Five North Korean drones crossed into South Korea, which is technically still at war with Pyongyang, in December, prompting Seoul to scramble fighter jets and attack helicopters, and try to shoot them down. —Reuters