The South Korean military is pushing to develop unmanned attack helicopters capable of hitting North Korea’s front-line bases as a way to counter growing threats from the communist country, a senior military official said Monday.

Seoul has been mulling ways to beef up deterrence and combat capability to cope with rising tension following Pyongyang’s warning of a third nuclear test in response to the U.N. sanctions for its December rocket launch. Last week, South Korea’s military chief warned of a pre-emptive strike even at the risk of war if Pyongyang showed intent to go through with a nuclear attack.

Currently, technical reviews are under way on whether to develop a helicopter bomber or modify aged 500 MD helicopters to equip them with an unmanned aviation system, GPS and radar for early deployment, the defense ministry said in a press release, without elaborating on further details. (Yonhap News)