Seoul’s military has said that North Korea has staged a Global Positioning System (GPS) jamming attack, an ongoing disruption operation that has affected several ships and dozens of civilian aircraft in South Korea.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) on Saturday, November 11, 2024, warned ships and aircraft operating in the West Sea area, also known as the Yellow Sea, to be cautious of North Korea’s GPS signal jamming.
The JCS said in a statement, “North Korea conducted GPS jamming provocations in Haeju and Kaesong yesterday and today [November 8-9],” adding that several vessels and dozens of civilian aircraft were experiencing “some operational disruptions” as a result.
GPS relies on a network of satellites and receivers that allows for global positioning and navigation.
The JCS also called on North Korea to immediately halt the interference and warned it would be held accountable for its actions.
Between May 29 and June 2, 2024, an estimated 500 planes and hundreds of ships experienced GPS problems due to North Korean interference, South Korea’s government said at the time.
Seoul complained to the United Nations aviation body, the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO), which warned North Korea to stop the jamming.
According to a South Korean news agency, the latest GPS “jamming attack” involved a weaker interference signal compared with the widespread interference North Korea perpetrated in May and June.
The news agency, citing, the JCS noted that South Korean military operations and equipment have not been affected.
Tension between the two Koreas has escalated in recent months amid missile tests by Pyongyang, North Korea’s destruction of transport infrastructure connecting the North with the South, the recent dumping of rubbish over South Korea from balloons launched in the North, and the reported deployment of North Korean troops to fight for Russia in Ukraine.
The jamming allegations come about a week after the North test-fired what it said was its most advanced and powerful solid-fuel ICBM missile, its first such launch since being accused of sending soldiers to help Russia fight Ukraine.
The latest accusations, based on intelligence reports, indicate the North has deployed about 10,000 troops to Russia, suggesting even deeper involvement in the conflict and triggering outcry in Seoul, Kyiv and western capitals.
South Korea, a major arms exporter, has a longstanding policy of not providing weapons to countries in conflict.
However, President Yoon Suk Yeol said this week that Seoul is now not ruling out the possibility of providing weapons directly to Ukraine, given Pyongyang’s military support of Moscow.
South Korea fired its own ballistic missile; a Hyunmoo surface-to-surface short-range missile into the West Sea on Friday, which the military said was to show Seoul’s “strong resolve to firmly respond” to any North Korean threats.
Hyunmoo missiles are key to the country’s so-called ‘Kill Chain’ preemptive strike capacity, which would allow Seoul to launch an attack if there are signs of an imminent North Korean attack.
Essential To Analyse Reason Behind Jamming Operation
Aviation experts said that North Korea’s rubbish balloon campaign, numerous ballistic missile launches and the emergence of GPS “spoofing”; where a signal is transmitted to override a legitimate GPS satellite signal, have increased risks in South Korean airspace, complicating airline operations as tensions rise between the rival nations.
Yang Moo-jin, President of the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, told a news agency that the reason for the jamming operation needs to be analysed. “It remains unclear whether there is an intention to divert the world’s attention from troop deployments, instill psychological insecurity among residents in the South, or respond to Friday’s drills,” Yang said, referring to South Korea’s test firing of a missile.
However, he said, the GPS jamming attacks pose a real risk of serious incidents, including potential aircraft accidents in the worst-case scenario.
