Two Chinese men have been arrested in the South Korean city of Busan for using a drone to illegally film a naval base, including a visiting US aircraft carrier, amid fears of such incidents occurring more regularly and threatening national security.
One of the men, in his 40s, was arrested on suspicion of undertaking an action 鈥渂enefiting an enemy by other methods鈥, South Korean police said on Thursday.
It marked the first time that South Korea has arrested a foreigner on such a charge and follows a series of incidents of unauthorised surveillance at sensitive South Korean military and other sites involving Chinese nationals, with at least five such incidents reported since the start of last year.
鈥淭his is a serious national security violation, particularly in light of the growing number of incidents involving foreign nationals illegally filming key infrastructure and military facilities,鈥 South Korean police said, according to a report by The Chosun Daily.
鈥淲e will continue to respond firmly and decisively to deter similar offences in the future.鈥
The suspects, who are graduate exchange students at Busan University, allegedly flew a Chinese-made drone near the base of the Korean Fleet Command between March 2023 and June 2024 on nine occasions, Yonhap News Agency reported.
They filmed the inside of the base and the US Navy鈥檚 aircraft carrier Theodore Roosevelt, which was docked in the port to take part in joint military exercises with South Korea and Japan.
The suspects were spotted conducting a drone flight from a mountain near the base on June 25 last year. Then South Korean President Yoon Suk-yeol was visiting the US carrier at the time.
Police investigations into the duo, who have been barred from leaving the country, are ongoing.
Among the illegally filmed content obtained from the men were 172 photos and 22 videos, some of which were shared on TikTok and other Chinese social media platforms.
South Korean police suspect the content might have been transmitted to the Chinese manufacturer of the drone used by the suspects.
A person who is convicted of compromising South Korea鈥檚 national security through such actions could face at least three years in jail or life imprisonment.
The second man, in his 30s, was being investigated on the less serious offence of violating military base law, The Korea Times reported. A third Chinese national, a woman, also in her 30s, was being investigated on the same charge but was not detained.
The two men and woman claimed they were 鈥渕ilitary enthusiasts鈥, but investigators found contact information in their phones that was believed to be linked to Chinese public security authorities, according to the Korea JoongAng Daily.
On Wednesday, arrest warrants were issued for the two men due to the risk of evidence destruction and escape, according to the Busan District Court.
In March, two Chinese teenagers were caught photographing aircraft near an airbase in Suwon. They were found to have taken thousands of photographs of four military facilities, including the US base in Pyeongtaek and an airbase in Cheongju.
During questioning, police found out the father of one of the teenagers was working for China鈥檚 public security bureau, which prompted a formal investigation into the incident.
In April, two Chinese nationals were caught taking unauthorised photographs near the US air force鈥檚 airbase in Osan, just days after they were detained for the same offence at the airbase. They were released after investigations concluded that there were no security risks involved.