South Korea, the United States and Japan staged a ballistic missile defense exercise on Wednesday in international waters to enhance military interoperability and readiness against escalating threats from North Korea, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. The five-hour trilateral drills came days after North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles and one intercontinental ballistic missile, respectively, on Monday and Feb. 18. The navies of the three countries “focused on

Defense Feb. 22, 2023

The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United Arab Emirates on Tuesday agreed to expand joint development and production of weapons, the South Korean Defense Ministry said on Wednesday. South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and his Emirati counterpart Mohammed Ahmed Al Bowardi discussed defense and arms industry cooperation, among other pending issues, at in-person talks in Abu Dhabi, according to a statement from South Korea’s Defense Ministry. The bilateral defense ministerial me

Defense Feb. 22, 2023

The priority of South Korean defense company Korea Aerospace Industries in the Middle East is to advance the project to co-develop multirole transport aircraft with the United Arab Emirates, KAI CEO Kang Goo-young said Monday. Speaking at the region’s largest international defense exhibition in UAE capital Abu Dhabi, he said the KAI was also eyeing opportunities to export combat helicopters and fighter jets to the Middle East. Kang said the KAI’s top priority in the Middle East would

North Korea Feb. 21, 2023

North Korea on Monday fired two ballistic missiles, which the country claimed is capable of destroying an “enemy operational airfield,” a day after South Korea and the US staged combined aerial drills in a show of the alliance’s readiness to respond to Pyongyang’s launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile. The two missiles were fired toward the East Sea from the area of Sukchon County, South Pyongan Province, between 7 a.m. and 7:11 a.m. The two traveled around 390

North Korea Feb. 20, 2023

The South Korean defense chief said Friday that the military does not accept the recent court ruling acknowledging the accountability of South Korean troops for civilian carnage during the Vietnam War. Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup underscored that South Korean troops stationed in Vietnam did not commit any wartime civilian massacres, citing records and testimonies compiled by the military. “The Defense Ministry cannot agree with the court ruling,” Lee told the National Assembly&rsqu

Defense Feb. 17, 2023

South Korea and the United States will stage a tabletop exercise next week to discuss ways to develop a joint strategy and response to North Korea’s potential use of nuclear weapons amid the North’s continuing nuclear saber-rattling. The discussion-based TTX led by the alliance’s high-level Deterrence Strategy Committee will be conducted on Feb. 22 at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Friday. The DSC TTX has been co-organized by South Kor

Defense Feb. 17, 2023

South Korea has redesignated the North Korean regime and its military as its “enemy” for the first time in six years, in the first defense white paper issued under the conservative Yoon Suk Yeol government. The Yoon government has decided to bring back the expression in light of North Korea’s antagonistic strategy toward South Korea, its continuing advancement of nuclear capabilities and persisting military provocations against South Korea, the Defense Ministry said Thursday. &

North Korea Feb. 16, 2023

Ukraine will never accept a cease-fire deal that requires Ukraine to cede more territory to Russia and allows the presence of Russian troops in illegally occupied territory, Vitaliy Kim, head of the regional military administration in the war-battered southern city of Mykolaiv in Ukraine, said in a joint interview with The Korea Herald and its sister publication Herald Business on Feb. 2. Kim was appointed the governor of the Mykolaiv region by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in November

Defense Feb. 16, 2023

South Korea and NATO held their first military staff-to-staff talks in Seoul to pave the way to strengthen military exchanges and cooperation, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday. South Korea's Director for Strategy and Plans Maj. Gen. Kim Su-kwang and Staff Maj. Gen. Francesco Diella, director of the Cooperative Security Division of the NATO International Military, participated as the chief delegates in the two days of meetings that began Monday. Both sides discussed a wide r

Defense Feb. 14, 2023

North Korean leader, Kim Jong-un, placed his young daughter, Kim Ju-ae, front and center at high-profile events last week, rekindling the debate on whether North Korea carves out a path to position Ju-ae as Kim’s heir apparent. Some experts said North Korea has signaled that Ju-ae has been internally decided as the next leader, while others point out Ju-ae has been used as a propaganda vehicle to send a message that nuclear weapons can protect the safety of the younger generations and high

North Korea Feb. 12, 2023

North Korea unveiled an apparent new solid-fuel intercontinental ballistic missile, or ICBM, at a highly choreographed military parade as expected, without its leader Kim Jong-un delivering warning messages to South Korea and the US. But the event, displaying the largest-ever number of nuclear-capable long-range missiles, clearly shows North Korea’s intent to relentlessly develop and mass-produce powerful strategic weapons that can hit the US mainland, according to experts after photos of

North Korea Feb. 9, 2023

South Korea will hold nationwide civil air raid drills in May after a six-year break, improve public alert and warning systems and expand shelters in preparation for potential aircraft and missile attacks from North Korea. The measures were discussed Wednesday in a closed-door meeting of the Central United Defense Council convened by President Yoon Suk Yeol. It was the first time that a South Korean president presided over the meeting since 2016, in light of the significance of pangovernmental e

Defense Feb. 8, 2023

North Korea belatedly disclosed the establishment of the general bureau dedicated to missile development ahead of a widely expected military parade marking the founding anniversary of its armed forces. The choreographed move, Seoul-based experts said, shows the country’s intent to openly reaffirm its goal of perpetuating missile buildup based on institutionalized processes run by the bureau.North Korean state media on Tuesday released photos and a video showing the flag of the &l

North Korea Feb. 7, 2023

A suspected North Korean balloon crossed the inter-Korean border and flew over South Korean airspace Sunday, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff confirmed Monday. A South Korean frontline unit in Yeoncheon, Gyeonggi Province first detected the 2-meter balloon, which flew from North Korea, with a terminal observation device, or TOD. South Korea’s JCS was immediately briefed on the situation. But the JCS ordered the military to reinforce surveillance without taking any countermeasures

North Korea Feb. 6, 2023

South Korea and the US on Friday staged another military air exercise over the west coast of South Korea by mobilizing their stealth fighters, just two days after US strategic bombers flew to the Korean Peninsula for combined aerial drills. The air combat exercise involved F-22 and F-35B advanced stealth fighters and F-16CM fighting aircraft of the US Air Force and South Korean Air Force’s F-35A stealth fighter jets, according to South Korea’s Air Force. “The combined exercise

Defense Feb. 3, 2023