Former South Korean President sentenced to 30 years for launching drones to Pyongyang
Kyiv • UNN
A Seoul court has sentenced the former president to 30 years in prison for sending drones to Pyongyang. The purpose of the operation was to create grounds for the imposition of martial law.
A court in Seoul has found former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol guilty of sending drones to Pyongyang in order to provoke a military confrontation with North Korea and create grounds for the imposition of martial law in 2024. This was reported by Bloomberg, according to UNN.
Details
The Seoul Central District Court on Friday sentenced Yoon to 30 years in prison on charges of aiding the enemy and abuse of power, stating that the operation was conducted at the risk of the lives of South Korean citizens.
The operation involved the use of South Korean military resources for personal purposes unrelated to national security or territorial defense. As a result, our military assets were exposed to North Korea, complicating future operations and leading to increased readiness on the part of North Korea
Yoon's legal team criticized the verdict, stating that the operation was a response to North Korea's campaign of launching trash balloons into South Korean territory.
To consider military actions aimed at protecting the state as a criminal offense, and the reaction of our armed forces to constant North Korean provocations as actions in favor of the enemy, is to ignore the security realities facing South Korea
Addendum
In 2024, North Korea launched thousands of balloons containing leaflets and trash in response to South Korean military exercises with the US and other actions that Pyongyang viewed as a threat to its sovereignty.
Yoon is already serving a life sentence for orchestrating an insurrection by declaring martial law—a move that shocked the country and triggered its most serious political crisis in decades. This case is currently under review by an appellate court.