Here is a new drone capability the ROK military has just decided to purchase:

An attack drone equipped with six 40-millimeter grenade launchers will be piloted by the military in the first half of next year, according to the state arms procurement agency on Tuesday.  
   
The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said in a June 3 press release that it signed a contract with two companies to purchase grenade-launching drones and small modular drones equipped with the latest technologies through a rapid pilot acquisition project system and to test-run the models in the first half of next year.  
   
The contracts with ONC Tech, which will provide the grenade-launching drones to the Army, and Preneu, which will furnish the small modular drones to the Navy and Air Force, are worth 662 million won ($576,600) and 1.71 billion won, respectively.  
  

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

The latest variant of the coronavirus has been confirmed to have arrived in Korea. I guess we will see if the Moon administration is going to use this news to justify even stricter lockdowns:

Korea confirmed its first two cases of the Delta Plus variant of Covid-19 on Tuesday — and both patients were fully vaccinated with the AstraZeneca vaccine.  
   
The Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency (KDCA) said Tuesday that the Delta plus variant was found in a man in his 40s who had no recent travel record, and in someone recently returned from the U.S.  
   
The Delta Plus variant is a mutation of the Delta variant and it has three sub-lineages: AY.1, AY.2 and AY.3.  
   
Delta Plus cases have been found in around 20 countries, including the U.S., Britain, Portugal, Japan and China, while the original highly contagious Delta strain has now spread to more than 130 countries.  

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

I wonder if this day care center had the calmest kids in Korea?:

Five people have been detained on suspicions of violating the law on narcotics for allegedly growing cannabis at a daycare center and several wetland sites along the west coast, the Korea Coast Guard said Monday. 

Fourteen others were booked without physical detention for purchasing marijuana from them and using it. 

The five people allegedly grew 13 cannabis plants in the hallway, back yard and on the rooftop of a daycare center run by the mother of one of them from March to July last year. The Coast Guard did not specify the location of the center.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

It looks like tougher anti-COVID measures will be coming soon for all Koreans:

The government has signaled that it will introduce additional antivirus measures on top of the toughest Level 4 social distancing regulations imposed on the Seoul metropolitan area, as these do not appear to have curtailed the rampant spread of COVID-19 over the past three weeks amid the fourth wave of the pandemic. 

Some medical experts have said it will only be a matter of time for new daily cases to exceed 2,000, calling on the government to preemptively impose tougher measures, such as placing the entire country under the Level 4 rules.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

This must be a thankless job cracking down on these parties:

Virus or not, a growing number of people have been caught attending parties in violation of COVID-19 rules, with some business owners opting to open and pay a fine than not open at all. (……)

Still, in the eastern coastal city of Gangneung, 237 kilometers east of Seoul, police walked in on a hotel pool party attended by dozens of people Saturday.

The city government of Gangneung said the party broke multiple COVID-19 rules, including a mandate on wearing masks, keeping a distance between people and other restrictions that apply to swimming pools.

The hotel was ordered to suspend operations for 10 days for violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act, according to the city government.

In other popular vacation spots, police reported cases of business owners boldly defying COVID-19 rules.

On Friday, a karaoke bar in Busan, 453 kilometers southeast of Seoul, entertained 15 guests only five days after it was caught doing business with its door locked, police said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Is this a sign that the Moon administration is wavering on conducting the upcoming combined exercise with the U.S.?:

South Korea said Monday it’ll keep pushing to improve ties and resume talks with rival North Korea, despite the North’s threat to rekindle animosities if Seoul holds its summertime military drills with the United States.

On Sunday night, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un warned the drills would seriously undermine efforts to restore mutual trust between the Koreas and becloud prospects for better ties if the training is launched as scheduled this month. Her statement raised a question about the sincerity of North Korea’s recent decision to reopen long-stalled communication channels with South Korea. 

South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Monday the exact timing, size and other details of the drills haven’t been fixed and that they were the issues that must be determined by South Korean and U.S. authorities. Spokesman Boo Seung-Chan repeated his previous statement that Seoul and Washington are examining factors like the pandemic’s current status, diplomat efforts to curb North Korea’s nuclear ambitions and South Korea-U.S. military readiness.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.