Seoul to invest in nighttime surveillance along DMZ

SEOUL, July 15 (UPI) -- Increased North Korean military movement along the Korean demilitarized zone requires better surveillance equipment, South Korea's Defense Ministry said Wednesday.

In a supplementary budget report submitted to South Korea's National Assembly, Seoul's military stated $104.1 million is needed, Yonhap reported.

Of that amount, $15.3 million is budgeted toward installing thermal cameras with nighttime surveillance capabilities at South Korean guard posts, according to television network SBS.

The military installed thermal cameras in 2005 but their use is limited to daytime surveillance.

Soldiers also have access to night-vision equipment, Seoul said, but again the hardware faces limitations in the field.

New thermal cameras and monitoring systems would be able to scan the horizon without the aid of nighttime lights, and could add a few hundred meters to South Korea's surveillance capacities along the demilitarized zone, according to the Defense Ministry.

On Saturday, South Korean soldiers fired warning shots at 10 North Korean soldiers near the Military Demarcation Line in the DMZ. They had crossed into the South.

The soldiers promptly retreated without firing back, according to Seoul.

In June, a teenage North Korean soldier raised tensions when he crossed into the South and defected at a South Korean guard post.

No weapons fire was exchanged.

The Defense Ministry said $44.2 million within the budget would go toward mending coastal barbed-wire fences and rusted out facilities.

With more women entering the military, another $6.3 million would be allocated toward constructing gender-specific facilities, such as restrooms and showers, according to Seoul.