Conscientious objectors file for alternative service

South Korea’s military on Tuesday opened applications for alternative military service to conscientious objectors. The move is in line with the Constitutional Court’s landmark ruling in June 2018 that objectors be given noncombat ways to fulfill their mandatory national service. Applicants who pass a series of fitness tests organized by the Defense Ministry and other expert groups will start their active duty as early as October as workers in correctional centers carrying out day-t

June 30, 2020

Air Force to procure 20 upgraded homegrown trainer jets

The state-run arms procurement agency has signed a deal to procure 20 new homegrown trainer jets for the Air Force, officials said Monday. Under the 688.3 billion-won ($573.34 million) deal, Korea Aerospace Industries (KAI) will supply 20 TA-50 Block-2 aircraft, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said. They will be deployed by 2024, the agency added. TA-50 Block-2 is an upgraded version of KAI's T-50 trainer jet, which is now in service. The new planes will replace KF-16 fi

June 29, 2020

S. Korea readies wartime command takeover

South Korea’s Defense Ministry convened the first of this year’s two meetings on preparations for the transfer of its wartime operational control from the United States, scheduled to be completed by 2022, the ministry said Monday. “The transfer of the wartime operational control will bolster our defense readiness,” Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo said, urging the military to be fully prepared for a successful handover. The meeting, attended by the defense minister, th

June 29, 2020

S. Korea, US closely working for OPCON transfer: Defense Ministry

South Korea and the United States are closely coordinating for the planned transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) of South Korean forces from Washington to Seoul, the defense ministry said Monday. After holding a meeting presided over by Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo to review this year's progress regarding the OPCON transfer, the ministry said the two countries have continued preparations to assess Seoul's capabilities to retake OPCON and to maintain a firm readiness posture desp

June 29, 2020

Army upgrades command and control system

The Army's command and control system has been upgraded to improve commanders' ability to make decisions in real time in combat situations, the arms procurement agency said Monday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration said it has completed the second improvement project on the Army's C4I -- command, control, communication, computer and intelligence -- system and deployed the new version to some front-line corps and military educational institutions. The upgraded system has new anal

June 29, 2020

Defense Ministry to remove asbestos from all military structures by 2025

The defense ministry said Monday it will eliminate asbestos from all military facilities by 2025 to ensure the health and safety of service members.     Around 11,600 military structures, including accommodations and sentry posts, were found to contain the carcinogenic material, according to an inspection last year. Of them, 5,450 buildings linked directly to everyday lives, such as barracks and restaurants inside bases, will first be rid of asbestos by 2022, and the rema

June 29, 2020

S. Korea's military to deploy new wheeled anti-aircraft system

South Korea plans to mass-produce a newly developed wheeled air defense cannon system for use by its military starting next year in a project to replace the aging Vulcan in operation, the nation's arms agency said Saturday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said it has signed a 250 billion-won ($200 million) contract with Hanwha Defense Co. on the 30-mm anti-aircraft gun wheeled vehicle system (AAGW). It would be a substitute for the Vulcan Air Defense System (VADS) that h

June 27, 2020

Govt. to officially allow enlistees' mobile phone use at barracks next month

Rank-and-file soldiers will officially be allowed to use their mobile phones after work starting next month, the defense ministry said Friday. Since April 2019, the ministry has allowed all draftees to use mobile phones, which had previously been banned for security reasons, on a trial basis. "The trial implementation found that the measure has many positive effects. It has helped troops better adapt to military life and became a useful means of their self-improvement," a ministry o

June 26, 2020

S. Korea to introduce more early warning aircraft from overseas

South Korea approved a plan Friday to purchase more airborne early warning and control aircraft (AEW&C) from overseas as part of efforts to beef up its aerial surveillance capabilities, the arms procurement agency said. Under the plan approved by the defense project promotion committee meeting, the country will launch the project next year to introduce more aircraft from overseas by 2027, rather than developing one at home, with a budget of 1.59 trillion won ($1.32 billion), according to t

June 26, 2020

Moon honors fallen heroes in Korean War anniversary event

President Moon Jae-in received and honored the remains of 147 South Korean soldiers killed in the Korean War, as his government commemorated the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the conflict Thursday amid a setback in the Korea peace process. He greeted the flag-draped cases of remains, airlifted from Hawaii the previous day, in a rare nighttime official ceremony held at Seoul Air Base, a military compound located just southeast of Seoul. Titled, Salute to the Heroes, the anniversary event

June 25, 2020

S. Korea, US say effort to disarm NK goes on

On Thursday, defense chiefs of South Korea and the US, Jeong Kyeong-doo and Mark Esper, respectively, vowed to bolster “diplomatic efforts for the complete denuclearization” of North Korea, in a joint statement to mark the 70th anniversary of the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War. Pyongyang should deliver on its promises to denuclearize and stop waging hostilities against Seoul, as agreed at the 2018 Washington-Pyongyang summit and worded in the 2018 inter-Korean military

June 25, 2020

[Graphic News] South vs. North Military might

  <During the 6.25 War> (1) Army troops South Korea: 96,140 / North Korea: 191,680 (2) Army Infantry 8 divisions / 10 divisions (3) Marines 1 unit / - (4) Howitzers 91 / 552 (5) Anti-tank guns 140 / 550 (6) Mortars 960 / 1,728 (7) Armored fighting vehicles 27 / 54 (8) Tanks - / 242 (9) Others Support units / 1 tank brigade, armor, patrol units, special forces Navy (10) Total forces 7,715 / 4,700 (11) Patrol ships 28 / 30 (12) Auxiliary ships 43 / 80 Air Force (13) Total forces 1,89

June 25, 2020

[Herald Interview] I wanted to do something: Swedish nurse

Sweden, one of the six countries that provided medical support for South Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War, fielded the largest group of medical personnel at the onset of the conflict to alleviate the humanitarian crisis. Nurse Jutta Andersson volunteered to join the 1,200-strong Swedish Red Cross dispatch, even though she said she had to “look in an atlas” to see where Korea was. “I first heard the appeal for Korea on the radio, that the government had decided to contribu

June 25, 2020

Seoul brings home Korean War remains after seven decades

The remains of 147 South Korean soldiers who perished during the Korean War returned home on Wednesday to a solemn welcome. A special ceremony for their homecoming is scheduled Thursday evening as part of events to mark the outbreak of the war on June 25, 1950. The remains, kept for nearly two years at the US Defense POW/MIA Accounting Agency, were among those North Korea returned to the US in early 1990s and after the 2018 summit between Washington and Pyongyang in Singapore. Through two joi

June 24, 2020

Chinese spy plane enters S. Korea's air defense zone

A Chinese military plane entered South Korea's air defense identification zone (KADIZ) earlier this week, prompting Seoul to scramble a fighter jet in response, military sources said Wednesday. The Chinese plane, presumed to be a Y-9 aircraft, entered the zone Monday morning in the area south of South Korea's southern island of Jeju and south of the easternmost islets of Dokdo before moving into the Japanese air defense identification zone, according to the sources. As the Chinese plane appro

June 24, 2020

Applications for alternative military service to begin next week

South Korea will begin receiving applications next week from those who want to substitute mandatory military service for other public services due to religious or personal beliefs, the defense ministry said Tuesday. By law, all able-bodied South Korean men must carry out military service for about two years in a country that faces North Korea across one of the world's most heavily fortified borders. Violators are punished with prison terms. In December, the National Assembly passed a bill a

June 23, 2020

Multiple US spy planes fly over Korean Peninsula amid NK threats

A US spy plane flew over South Korea on Tuesday, an aviation tracker said, the latest in a series of flights apparently aimed at monitoring North Korea amid bellicose rhetoric and threats from the communist nation. The RC-12X Guardrail was spotted in the skies above South Korea in the morning, No Callsign tweeted. On Monday, six of the same type of plane were seen operating, along with the US Air Force's RC-135W Rivet Joint, in a rare sign of ramped-up surveillance over North Korea. Tensions

June 23, 2020

S. Korea, Singapore hold defense strategy talks, discuss coronavirus

South Korea and Singapore held defense strategy talks via video links Monday and shared their responses to the new coronavirus, Seoul's defense ministry said. During the videoconference with his Singaporean counterpart, Teo Eng Dih, Deputy Defense Minister Chung Suk-hwan explained the government’s response to COVID-19, and the military‘s contribution in stemming the spread of the virus, according to the ministry. Teo praised Seoul’s measures to control the virus and shared h

June 22, 2020

USFK takes old THAAD equipment out of Seongju base after replacement

The US Forces Korea (USFK) took key electronic equipment out of its THAAD missile defense base in South Korea on Monday after replacement equipment was brought into the base last month, officials said. On May 29, the US military, with the assistance of the South Korean defense ministry, brought new interceptor missiles and other military hardware and equipment onto its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) base in the central town of Seongju by ground as replacements. "Early today,

June 22, 2020

US bombers spotted near Korean Peninsula amid heightened tensions

Two US strategic bombers have been spotted near the Korean Peninsula, a flight tracker said Friday, amid heightened tensions after North Korea threatened South Korea over the sending of anti-Pyongyang leaflets. The two B-52Hs were seen flying over northern Japan on Friday, according to Aircraft Spots. It did not provide other details such as exactly when the bombers were spotted. This marked the second time that the heavy bombers have flown near the Korean Peninsula this week. Two B-52Hs part

June 19, 2020