Military to develop mine detection robot

By Kang Seung-woo

The military will develop robots to detect and remove mines in the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ).

“We will embark on the development project from 2017,” a military official said Thursday. “The demining robots will be used in rear-areas operations, including handling explosives as well as removing landmines buried in the DMZ.”

About 170 robots will be put into operation in the early 2020s, and the budget for the development is estimated to be less than 500 billion won ($431 million).

The project comes after two South Korean soldiers patrolling the DMZ were severely wounded by a North Korean landmine attack on Aug. 4 that pushed South and North Korea to the brink of a military confrontation across the border.

Meanwhile, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said Wednesday the military will develop 100 unmanned vehicles for DMZ search operations.

The plan was approved by the Defense Acquisition Program Executive Committee, presided over by Defense Minister Han Min-koo.

“When the unmanned search vehicles are deployed, they will play a role of stably aiding highly dangerous search and reconnaissance operations by frontline military units,” DAPA spokesman Kim Si-cheol said. “We will embark on the development project in 2017 with an investment of 780 billion won.”

He said the vehicles will be produced from 2024. But they will not be loaded with firearms for combat missions due to the development of the demining robots.

The committee also approved a plan to produce an initial 15 sets of unmanned aerial vehicles by 2018 that will be used in search missions near the border.