S. Korea, US pin hope on security talks to bridge gaps on NK

The South Korean and US defense chiefs will hold annual security talks in Washington on Wednesday amid concerns that an alleged gap between the two countries’ approaches to North Korea might pose a challenge to the decades-old alliance. 　Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and his US counterpart, James Mattis, will attend the 50th Security Consultative Meeting, with senior diplomats and defense officials joining the bilateral consultation held annually since 1968. 　The Ministry of National Defense

Oct. 30, 2018

Korea, US to hold annual defense talks in Washington this week

WASHINGTON -- South Korea and the United States will hold their annual defense ministers' talks in Washington this week over a range of bilateral issues, such as the transfer of wartime operational control, Seoul officials said Monday.Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and his US counterpart, James Mattis, will attend the 50th Security Consultative Meeting on Wednesday as the allies seek to stay on the same page to achieve the final, fully verified denuclearization of North Korea. Seoul and Washi

Oct. 30, 2018

Minister says allies need alternative to joint air exercise

South Korea supports the US decision to suspend their major combined air combat training, seeking alternative ways to bolster the combined defense posture, Seoul's defense chief said Monday.In a Singapore meeting with Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo earlier this year, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis proposed indefinitely postponing the massive Vigilant ACE drill that was slated for December.It was aimed at helping move forward denuclearization talks with North Korea and reducing the defense bu

Oct. 29, 2018

Hopes high for free access to ‘scariest place on Earth’

　With the two Koreas withdrawing firearms and soldiers from guard posts within a jointly controlled area inside the heavily fortified border region, the focus is now on when and how security guards and civilian visitors will be allowed to travel freely inside the restricted area.　The United Nations Command announced Monday that the demilitarization of the Joint Security Area was complete after the US-led organization confirmed the process along with the militaries of South Korea and North Korea.

Oct. 29, 2018

China's warplane enters Korean air defense zone

A Chinese military aircraft entered South Korea's air defense domain without notice again Monday, prompting the Air Force here to scramble fighter jets as a warning, Seoul's defense authorities said.The plane entered the Korea air defense identification zone at around 10:03 a.m. and flew out of it about half an hour later toward Ieo Island, a Seoul-controlled submerged rock south of Jeju Island, according to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The plane, believed to be a Y-9 reconnaissance aircraft, then

Oct. 29, 2018

Military chiefs of Korea, US, Japan talk regional cooperation

The military chiefs of South Korea, the United States and Japan met in Washington Friday to discuss cooperation on regional contingency and peace issues, the Pentagon said.The talks were led by South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Park Han-ki and his US and Japanese counterparts, Gen. Joseph Dunford and Adm. Katsutoshi Kawano, the Pentagon said in a press release.The leaders were also joined by US Indo-Pacific Command chief Adm. Philip Davidson, US Forces Korea commander Gen. Vincen

Oct. 27, 2018

S. Korea, US to hold annual defense ministers' talks next week

South Korea and the United States will hold their annual defense ministers' talks in Washington, DC,next week to discuss the fate of this year's combined air exercise, the transfer of wartime operational control and other issues, Seoul officials said Friday. Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and his US counterpart, James Mattis, will attend the 50th Security Consultative Meeting on Wednesday amid the allies' efforts to ensure cooperation over denuclearization and a lasting peace regime on the pe

Oct. 27, 2018

Two Koreas militaries agree to ‘completely destroy’ guard post by November

PANMUNJOM, Joint Security Area -- The two Koreas’ militaries on Friday agreed to completely destroy guard posts in a front-line region by the end of November, as the two sides reiterated thier pledge to suspend all cross-border hostilities starting next month. 　At the general-level military talks held at the border village of Panmunjom, the two sides endorsed the comprehensive military agreement signed last month, in which the two Koreas’ defense chiefs agreed to cease all hostile acts on land,

Oct. 26, 2018

Korean War remains recovered inside DMZ during demining operation

The South Korean military has discovered what may be Korean War remains during a demining operation at a front-line region, the Ministry of National Defense said Thursday, as the two Koreas withdrew firearms and guard posts from the jointly controlled zone inside the border area.  　　The ministry said its war remains recovery agency found two sets of remains earlier this week at Arrowhead Ridge, located inside the heavily-fortified Demilitarized Zone. Rifles, helmets, bullets and a South Korean A

Oct. 25, 2018

PAC-2 missile explodes over firing range: military

A Patriot surface-to-air missile blew up Thursday seconds after being launched at a South Korean firing range, the Air Force said.The PAC-2 missile ascended for about four seconds after blastoff at the seaside Daecheon range in South Chungcheong Province during an annual air defense guided missile practice.  (Yonhap)It was programmed to self-destruct in case of an “abnormal” condition. No one was hurt or killed as it exploded over the sea, according to the Air Force.It added that an investigatio

Oct. 25, 2018

Military chiefs of Korea, US to meet Thursday

The military chiefs of South Korea and the United States will hold talks in Washington this week, defense officials said Wednesday, after the allies paused some exercises to encourage North Korea to give up its nuclear weapons program.South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Park Han-ki and his US counterpart, Gen. Joe Dunford, will meet for the annual Military Committee Meeting at the Pentagon on Thursday, according to the Pentagon and South Korean defense officials.South Korean Defens

Oct. 25, 2018

Agency seeks to devise 'reasonable' ways to improve military service exemption program

The state troop recruitment agency said Tuesday that it will devise "reasonable" ways to improve the active-duty military service exemption program that critics say has unfairly favored athletes and artists for their onetime wins in international competitions.In its policy briefing during a parliamentary audit, the Military Manpower Administration said that it is currently running a joint task force with the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism to improve the program "in light of fairness.""T

Oct. 23, 2018

Generals from both Koreas to discuss joint military committee

The two Koreas’ senior military officers are to hold a meeting Friday at the border village inside the Demilitarized Zone, the Defense Ministry said Monday, in an effort to assess the implementation of the comprehensive military agreement signed last month. According to the Ministry of National Defense, the two Koreas’ militaries agreed to hold general-level talks at the truce village of Panmunjom. The meeting will kick off at 10 a.m. in the North Korean building Panmungak. During the meeting, t

Oct. 22, 2018

Two Koreas, UN Command agree to withdraw firearms, guard posts by Thursday

The two Koreas’ militaries and the United Nations Command agreed to complete until Thursday the withdrawal of firearms and guard posts from the jointly-controlled area inside the heavily-fortified Demilitarized Zone. During the trilateral meeting held on the border village of Panmunjom, the three militaries confirmed that the two Koreas have cleared landmines near the JSA and a mountainous area inside the DMZ. The disarming JSA and demining operation were a part of a military agreement signed af

Oct. 22, 2018

Washington proposed suspension of joint air drill:Seoul's defense ministry

The suspension of a scheduled air drill between South Korean and US military forces was first proposed by the Pentagon, the Defense Ministry said Sunday, and added Seoul suggested adjusting the scope of the exercise rather than canceling it altogether. A senior official from the Ministry of National Defense told reporters that while Exercise Vigilant Ace, slated for December, would not go ahead, the South Korean military would proceed with its own unilateral exercises. The official said that Sec

Oct. 21, 2018

S. Korea to conduct solo air exercise in December

Despite the possible suspension of the upcoming joint air defense exercise with the United States, South Korea will carry out its own air drill as scheduled in December, an official of the defense ministry here said Sunday.The annual Seoul-Washington air exercise, Vigilant Ace, which had been scheduled for December, is highly likely to be suspended this year to lend support for ongoing peace efforts involving North Korea, according to officials of the allies. The large-scale air exercise has bee

Oct. 21, 2018

US and South Korea again call off a major military exercise

The United States and South Korea are scrapping another major military exercise this year, a Pentagon official said Friday, citing a push for diplomatic progress with North Korea. The top Pentagon spokeswoman, Dana W. White, said Washington and Seoul are suspending an air exercise known as Vigilant Ace "to give the diplomatic process every opportunity to continue.'' It was the latest move aimed at trying to nudge North Korea, which despises such US-South Korean exercises, into negotiating about

Oct. 20, 2018

Korea, China to set up further hotline between air forces

The defense chiefs of South Korea and China held talks on Friday during which they agreed to set up more hotline between their air forces and promote military exchanges. South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and his Chinese counterpart, Wei Fenghe, also agreed to jointly work toward peace and stability on the Northeast Asia, Seoul's defense ministry said in a statement.  South Korean Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and his Chinese counterpart, Wei Fenghe (Yonhap)The talks between Jeon

Oct. 19, 2018

Korea, US fail to bridge differences over splitting defense costs

South Korea and the United States failed Friday to reconcile their differences over sharing the cost of stationing American troops on the peninsula during their eighth round of talks in Seoul, the foreign ministry here said.    The allies wrapped up their four-day negotiation session without bridging the gaps on a set of sticking points such as the exact cost Seoul is set to shoulder for the upkeep of 28,500 American troops in the South. From right: South Korea`s Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-do

Oct. 19, 2018

Controversy erupts over US military’s tightened base access for Koreans in Japan

　Controversy has erupted over the United States military’s decision to impose extra scrutiny on South Koreans visiting US bases in Japan, prompting speculation as to the reasoning behind it. 　According to US military newspaper Stars and Stripes, US Forces Japan has recently added South Korea to a list of nations whose citizens must undergo additional screening before they can be escorted onto installations.　USFJ said the measure is a part of the routine process for reviewing its policies for thi

Oct. 18, 2018