South Korea evacuates border residents after US drone mix-up

South Korea ordered residents near the heavily armed border with North Korea to evacuate after the military mistook a US drone participating in a joint exercise as an unidentified aircraft and prepared to shoot it down.The United States military confirmed the aircraft involved was an American drone that was taking part in a joint training with South Korea.“US Marine Corps personnel are assessing the circumstances surrounding the incident and continue to coordinate with our Republic of Korea Marine Corps partners and appropriate local authorities,” US Forces Korea said in a statement to Bloomberg News.Residents in Cheorwon county, which borders North Korea, received a text message on July 30 urging them to evacuate after the unidentified unmanned aircraft was detected, Yonhap News reported.South Korea’s military raised its alert level and prepared to shoot down the aircraft before determining about an hour later that it was a US drone participating in bilateral training, according to the report.South Korea’s Defence Ministry declined to comment.The episode underscores the heightened sensitivity around drone activity on the Korean peninsula, where repeated incursions and provocations have kept both sides on high alert.Tensions over drones intensified since 2022, when North Korea sent five unmanned aerial vehicles across the border, including one that flew near then President Yoon Suk Yeol’s office.South Korea refrained from shooting them down, citing the risk to civilians in densely populated areas.More recently, a Seoul court in June found Yoon guilty of sending drones over Pyongyang to provoke North Korea to justify his declaration of martial law in 2024.South Korea hosts about 28,500 American troops on its soil, in part to deter North Korea’s aggression.It was not immediately clear what caused the latest incident.It comes as strains have emerged in the US-South Korea alliance over issues ranging from trade to defence, testing ties between Seoul and Washington. It also happened the same day President Donald Trump’s new ambassador to South Korea arrived in Seoul, ending an 18-month vacancy.Earlier this week, residents in Pyeongtaek, about 50km south of Seoul, were briefly ordered to evacuate after a white phosphorus leak was reported at a US base.Some South Korean civic groups have called for an investigation into the incident and an apology from the US military. BLOOMBERG