Suspected North Korea Drone Photographed US Missile Defense Site

South Korea said Tuesday a drone believed sent from North Korea had been spying on a USA missile defence system before it crashed.

Key components of the American Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system, known as THAAD, are in place to protect South Korea from a North Korean missile launch.

The South Korean Defense Ministry on Tuesday released this photo, taken Friday, of a suspected North Korean drone.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in, center, shakes hands with FIFA President Gianni Infantino during their meeting at the presidential Blue House in Seoul, South Korea, Monday, June 12, 2017.

However, North Korea has ignored all calls to halt its programs, which are in violation of United Nations resolutions, conducting dozens of missile launches and testing two nuclear bombs since the beginning of previous year.

South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his administration have been largely critical of the arrival of THAAD systems in his country. North Korea has so far shown no sign of responding, however, instead conducting missile tests at an unprecedented pace in defiance of global sanctions imposed on it. All the while, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un must be laughing into his sleeve.

Prior to her impeachment, President Park Geun-hye's government had approved the THAAD defense system.

Reuters reports that the drone was similar to a North Korean drone previously discovered on an island near the North/South border in 2014 and was likely acquired through one of North Korea's various front companies in China. China also says the system does nothing to deter North Korea.

"We must induce North Korea to change its attitude and ultimately we must find a way to fundamentally resolve North Korea's nuclear and missile threat and maintain peace", he said.

The soldier, who has not been publicly identified, approached a South Korean border guard post and expressed a wish to defect, the ministry said in a statement.

The joint alert from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and the Federal Bureau of Investigation said that "cyber actors of the North Korean government" had targeted the media, aerospace and financial sectors, as well as critical infrastructure, in the United States and globally.

Speaking at the Federation Internationale de Football Association meeting yesterday, Moon said sport could play a role in easing tensions in the region.

Seoul's former conservative government closed the industrial zone in February 2016 after North Korea tested a long-range rocket in defiance of worldwide sanctions.