Govt. agencies probed for alleged neglect in NK guard post verification

The South Korean Board of Audit and Inspection has initiated an inquiry into allegations that the Defense Ministry and other government agencies neglected to verify the demolition of front-line guard posts, which North Korea was supposed to undertake according to the 2018 inter-Korean military agreement. According to both the BAI and the Defense Ministry on Friday, an inspection began Monday, following an earlier audit request from the nonprofit organization Korean Retired Generals and Admirals

March 22, 2024

S. Korea, US stage urban warfare drills in border city

South Korea and the United States were staging combined urban combat training this week to bolster their readiness against threats in urban areas and underground facilities, Seoul's Army said Thursday. The five-day Army exercise kicked off at an urban operations training ground in the border city of Paju, 37 kilometers northwest of Seoul, on Monday. The exercise mobilized some 400 troops, including soldiers from the South's 9th Infantry Division, a US infantry platoon and other units,

March 21, 2024

S. Korea, US conduct river-crossing drills near border with N. Korea

South Korea and the United States have been conducting river-crossing drills near the border with North Korea to enhance the interoperability of their troops, Seoul's Army said Wednesday. The exercise has been under way on the Imjin River in the border city of Paju, located 37 kilometers north of Seoul, since March 11, according to the Army. Approximately 470 troops from the South Korean Army's 5th Armored Brigade and an engineering battalion under the US 2nd Infantry Division/ROK-US C

March 20, 2024

Government plans more ‘military credits’ for conscripted soldiers’ national pension

The South Korean government said Tuesday it is pushing to increase the benefits for conscripted soldiers by counting their entire service periods towards National Pension plan credits. The National Pension Service requires one to have been enrolled for a minimum of 10 years to receive benefits, but those who have fulfilled their mandatory military duties can currently have their mandated subscription period cut by six months via the "military credit" system. The recent plan by the Mini

March 19, 2024

Defense chief reaffirms current size of US troops in S. Korea 'absolutely necessary'

South Korea's Defense Minister Shin Won-sik on Monday reaffirmed that the current size of US troops stationed in the country is "absolutely necessary" after a former top Pentagon official questioned the need for such a presence. Christopher Miller, who served as the acting secretary of defense under the former Donald Trump administration, said in a recent local media interview that it was time to discuss whether South Korea still needs 28,500 American troops or if change was neede

March 18, 2024

S. Korea conducts large-scale military exercises near border islands

South Korea has conducted large-scale military exercises around western border islands to practice deploying forces in the event of North Korean provocations, the military said Sunday. The maneuvers took place Friday around the islands of Baengnyeong and Yeonpyeong near the Yellow Sea border with the North, involving the Marines' quick maneuver force, the Navy landing ship (LST-II), the MUH-1 Marineon helicopter, and the Korean Assault Amphibious Vehicle, according to the North West Islands

March 17, 2024

S. Korean, US warplanes stage live-fire drills against NK threats

South Korean and US warplanes staged a combined live-fire exercise against North Korean cruise missile and long-range artillery threats in waters off the west coast this week, the South's Air Force said Friday. The five-day drills began Monday, mobilizing some 40 aircraft, including South Korean F-35A, F-15K and F-4E jets, as well as A-10 and F-16 aircraft from the US 7th Air Force stationed in the country. Pilots trained on staging precision strikes against simulated enemy cruise missiles

March 15, 2024

S. Korea stages live-fire drills with US military engineers near inter-Korean border

South Korea staged live-fire tank drills Thursday near the inter-Korean border, involving US military engineers, the Army said, as the allies' major annual springtime exercise came to a close. The drills took place as part of a weeklong training at Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon, just 25 kilometers south of the inter-Korean border, in connection with the combined Freedom Shield exercise designed to bolster deterrence against the North's nuclear and missile threats. Some 300 pe

March 14, 2024

S. Korean, US defense officials visit Samsung's chip plant

South Korean and US defense officials overseeing technology policies visited Samsung Electronic Co.'s semiconductor plant this week, Seoul's defense ministry said Wednesday, amid efforts to bolster information and communication technology cooperation. Cheon Seung-hyun, head of the defense ministry's Intelligent Information Policy Bureau, and Leslie A. Beavers, the Pentagon's principal deputy chief information officer, made the visit Monday at the plant in Suwon, 30 kilometers

March 13, 2024

Iraqi general visits S. Korea to examine KAI's Surion helicopter

A senior Iraqi Army general visited South Korea last week to look over a homegrown utility helicopter, sources said Wednesday, raising speculation over the Middle Eastern country's potential purchase of the aircraft. Lt. Gen. Samir Zaki Hussein Al-Maliki, commander of Iraq's Army Aviation Command, arrived in South Korea on March 4 for a four-day visit to meet with South Korean military and defense company officials, according to the sources from the defense industry and relevant author

March 13, 2024

Top general visits Air Force missile defense center amid N.K. threats

South Korea's top military officer on Sunday called for responding "overwhelmingly" against any enemy provocations as he visited an Air Force missile defense operations center, the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said. JCS Chairman Adm. Kim Myung-soo made the call amid concerns of North Korean saber-rattling during the annual Freedom Shield exercise between South Korea and the United States, which began Monday for an 11-day run. "If the enemy undertakes a provocation, don't

March 10, 2024

S. Korea to dismantle support foundation for Kaesong complex as early as next week

South Korea is expected to pass a proposal to shut down a support foundation for the now-shuttered inter-Korean industrial complex in the North's border city of Kaesong as early as next week, the unification ministry said Sunday. The revision to the decree on support for the Kaesong Industrial Complex will be presented at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday, which will entrust the foundation's tasks to the civilian sector, according to the ministry. The foundation -- set up in 2007 to support th

March 10, 2024

S. Korea seeking to establish ground-based military rocket launch site

South Korea's arms procurement agency said Wednesday it is seeking to establish a ground-based military rocket launch site to accommodate future satellite launches. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration unveiled the plan in a policy report to President Yoon Suk Yeol, as the military plans to launch dozens of small-sized reconnaissance satellites by 2030 in addition to its first spy satellite launched last year. While the military currently operates a maritime launch site, there h

March 6, 2024

South Korea-US military drills ‘war exercises’: Pyongyang

The annual military drills conducted by South Korea and the US were “frantic war exercises,” North Korea said Tuesday, warning of consequences. “The US and the Republic of Korea have once again launched provocative, large-scale joint military exercises that amplify the unpredictability of the situation in the Korean Peninsula,” North Korea’s Ministry of Defense said in a statement carried by the official state media, the Korean Central News Agency, referring to Sout

March 5, 2024

US warship enters naval base in Jeju for replenishment purpose

A US Navy destroyer arrived at a naval base on the southern island of Jeju on Tuesday for a replenishment purpose, the South Korean Navy said. The USS Higgins Arleigh Burke-class destroyer entered the base to replenish supplies and for crewmembers' rest, a day after South Korea and the United States began their annual combined Freedom Shield exercise for an 11-day run. A South Korean Navy official said the warship's arrival is unrelated to the exercise and there are no plans for joint

March 5, 2024

USFK F-16 fighter jets join multinational drills in Thailand

A group of F-16 fighter jets operated by the US Forces Korea departed South Korea last month to join a multinational exercise in Thailand, the aircraft's unit has said. The unspecified number of F-16s assigned to the US 8th Fighter Wing at Kunsan Air Base in Gunsan, 178 kilometers south of Seoul, left the country on Feb. 22 to take part in the annual Cobra Gold exercise, the unit recently said. The exercise led by the United States and Thailand began last Tuesday and is set to end later thi

March 5, 2024

S. Korea, US begin key annual military drills amid NK threats

South Korea and the United States kicked off a major combined military exercise Monday to reinforce deterrence against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats amid concern Pyongyang could use the maneuvers as a pretext for provocations. The annual Freedom Shield exercise got under way for an 11-day run amid heightened tensions over Pyongyang's continued saber-rattling, including artillery firings near the western sea border and a series of missile launches. The springtime exercise ma

March 4, 2024

S. Korea's 1st spy satellite transmits 'good-resolution' images of central Pyongyang

South Korea's first military spy satellite has successfully transmitted "good-resolution" images of central Pyongyang back home following the satellite's launch in December, military sources said Sunday. The first indigenous South Korean military spy satellite was placed into orbit from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on Dec. 2, allowing South Korea to independently gain satellite imagery on the North Korean military and leadership. According to the sources, the ele

March 3, 2024

US investigations into F-16 crashes in S. Korea ongoing amid public safety concerns

The US military's investigations into three recent F-16 fighter jet crashes in South Korea remain ongoing, a US Air Force official has said, as safety concerns remain unabated over the series of crashes. Last May, a US F-16 crashed in Pyeongtaek, 60 kilometers south of Seoul, followed by another crash into the West Sea in December and a third one into the waters in January. All three pilots from the crashes ejected from the aircraft and were rescued. Ten months on since the May crash, its c

March 3, 2024

S. Korea takes part in multinational drills in Thailand

South Korea's Navy and Marine Corps joined the United States and Thailand in a large-scale annual multinational exercise in the Southeast Asian country to enhance amphibious landing capabilities and humanitarian operations, officials said Saturday. The Cobra Gold exercise took place on a coastal area in Thailand on Friday, involving three landing ships of the South Korean Navy, including the 4,900-ton No Jeok Bong vessel, six armored vehicles, F-16 fighter jets and C-130 transport aircraft,

March 2, 2024