S. Korea, US defense chiefs vow to sternly deal with arms transfers between N. Korea, Russia

The defense chiefs of South Korea and the United States spoke by phone Wednesday and vowed to sternly deal with North Korea's arms transfers to Russia in coordination with the international community, Seoul's defense ministry said. Defense Minister Shin Won-sik and his US counterpart, Lloyd Austin, held the phone talks amid rising concerns over North Korea's supplying munitions and missiles to Russia to replenish its weapons stockpile for use in Ukraine. "They shared concerns

Feb. 28, 2024

Russia sending North Korea food in return for arms: Seoul defense chief

North Korea has provided Russia with 6,700 shipping containers’ worth of artillery shells over the past six months, according to Seoul’s defense chief Shin Won-sik. In return, the North is believed to have received from Russia enough food and other essentials to fill about 10,000 shipping containers over the same period, Shin said. In a press conference on Monday, Shin noted that the North Korean military factories for producing arms for Russia were operating at full capacity. &ldquo

Feb. 27, 2024

US fighter jet drops fuel tanks into Yellow Sea in 'in-flight emergency'

A US F-16 fighter jet dropped two of its fuel tanks into waters off South Korea's west coast as it experienced an "in-flight emergency" before safely returning to base, a US Air Force unit said. The F-16 of the 8th Fighter Wing jettisoned the tanks into the Yellow Sea as it experienced the emergency at about 10 a.m. after taking off for a routine sortie from Kunsan Air Base in Gunsan, 178 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the unit. The pilot still managed to return safely to

Feb. 22, 2024

Defense chief downplays concerns over US possibly taking softer stance on NK nukes

Defense Minister Shin Won-sik on Thursday downplayed concerns over the US potentially shifting to a softer stance on North Korea's nuclear program amid the possibility that former US President Donald Trump could win the November presidential election. Shin made the remark as a ruling party lawmaker raised concerns that calls for seeking a freeze of the North's nuclear program, instead of its denuclearization, could gain momentum in the US as Pyongyang pushes to advance its interconti

Feb. 22, 2024

New evidence of North Korean military aid to Russia: Ukrainian police official

In a latest sign of military cooperation between North Korea and Russia, a senior Ukrainian police official Sergei Bolvinov said Wednesday that part of a weapon that Russia used to attack Ukraine had Korean writing on it. “Russians continue to use weapons from North Korea in the Kharkiv region,” he said in a Facebook post, alongside a photograph of the wrecked weapon suspected of having been sourced from North Korea. The National Intelligence Service in Seoul believes North Korea beg

Feb. 16, 2024

[Contribution] Looking back on 35 years of ties on the occasion of Serbia's National Day

By Nemanja Grbic, Serbian ambassador to Korea As the Embassy of Serbia in Seoul proudly celebrates its National Day together with the small Serbian community living here, as well as our Korean friends, it is an opportunity to once again recall the close and decadeslong friendly relations that so happily exist between our two countries and two peoples. Statehood Day or National Day is celebrated every Feb. 15 in Serbia to commemorate the outbreak of the First Serbian Uprising in 1804, which e

Feb. 15, 2024

North Korea conducts fifth cruise missile launch of year

North Korea on Wednesday conducted a launch of cruise missiles for the fifth time since the start of the year. “Our military detected several unidentified cruise missiles off the northeast coast of Wonsan, Gangwon Province, at around 9 a.m. the details of which are being closely analyzed by the intelligence agencies of South Korea and the US,” South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said. The JCS said the South Korean military was “working closely with the US side amid heig

Feb. 14, 2024

S. Korea, UAE stage combined anti-terrorism drills

South Korea's military contingent in the United Arab Emirates has conducted its first combined exercise of the year with its host nation's troops, officials said Tuesday, amid efforts to boost military ties. The Akh unit recently staged the exercise in the Middle Eastern country to boost joint capabilities in ground-based and maritime anti-terrorism operations, according to the officials. The two sides held various drills, including those on hostage rescue operations, sniper shooting a

Feb. 13, 2024

S. Korean Army to relax policy on retrieving bullet casings

South Korean military said Wednesday that it is planning to revise the Army regulation on retrieving casings of bullets used in marksmanship training, by deleting the part mandating soldiers to collect every single casing. The military is planning to revise Article 46 of the current Army regulation that states "soldiers must retrieve 100 percent of the used casings at the firing ranges and submit them" to "soldiers must retrieve the used casings at the firing ranges and submit the

Feb. 11, 2024

Defense minister back from Middle East with $3.2b deal

Shin Won-sik, South Korea’s Minister of National Defense, wrapped up his three-country Middle East trip with large defense industry deals. Shin struck a deal to export some $3.2 billion worth of ballistic missile interceptor system known as Cheongung II in a meeting with his Saudi counterpart, Khalid bin Salman Al Saud. The deal -- first floated about a month after President Yoon Suk Yeol’s state visit to Saudi Arabia in October last year -- was finalized at the meeting of the defens

Feb. 7, 2024

South Korea to set up command for defense against North Korean nuclear threats

South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense is mulling a plan to establish a new command for countering North Korean nuclear threats in Seoul. The plan would involve expanding the existing Joint Chiefs of Staff headquarters for responding to nuclear and weapons of mass destruction threats to South Korea, according to the Defense Ministry on Tuesday. The JCS headquarters was set up in January last year. The Defense Ministry said the new command would oversee South Korea’s “three-

Feb. 6, 2024

S. Korea to mass-produce 155 mm extended-range artillery shell

South Korea will mass-produce a 155-millimeter extended-range artillery shell this year after successfully completing its development in a yearslong project, the state arms procurement agency said Tuesday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration held a meeting with ammunition maker Poongsan at the company's research center in Daejeon, 139 kilometers south of Seoul, to officially conclude the development project launched in 2014 after the shell was assessed as combat suitable last Aug

Feb. 6, 2024

N. Korea slams Seoul defense chief's anti-Pyongyang warning as 'catalyst' for clash

North Korea on Monday denounced South Korea's defense minister over his latest warning that Pyongyang will face the end of its regime in the event it wages war, calling his remark a "catalyst" for a physical clash. Minister Shin Won-sik warned on Jan. 24 that Pyongyang will face the end of its regime in the event it wages a war, hours after North Korea fired several cruise missiles into the Yellow Sea. During his visit to the 17th Fighter Wing at Cheongju Air Base, 112 kilometers

Feb. 5, 2024

S. Korea, UAE agree to strengthen defense cooperation

South Korea and the United Arab Emirates have agreed to bolster their bilateral cooperation in defense and the arms industry, Seoul's defense ministry said Friday. South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik met with his UAE counterpart, Mohammed bin Mubarak Al Mazrouei, earlier in the day in the UAE, where they discussed ways to strengthen their cooperation as "special strategic partners," the ministry said. The two defense chiefs also reviewed the achievements of their defense co

Feb. 2, 2024

Indonesians investigated for suspected theft of South Korean fighter jet secrets

Some Indonesian employees at the Korea Aerospace Industries have been barred from leaving South Korea on suspicions they were trying to steal secrets about KF-21 fighter technology. KAI reported the employees to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration last month after becoming suspicious of an attempted leak. The administration, a public affiliate of the Ministry of National Defense, said that an investigation is underway to determine if the information the employees are suspected of stor

Feb. 2, 2024

Women, old men in military? Korea debates solutions for looming conscript shortfall

Reforming military obligations for men in South Korea has always been a flashpoint for heated debate. But recently, fuel has been added to the fire with the emergence of two rather radical ideas. One idea came from professor Choi Young-jin of Chung-Ang University in Seoul, who proposed in an op-ed for a local daily the formation of a "senior army" composed of men aged 55 to 75 to address an anticipated shortfall in military personnel. In South Korea, which faces the nuclear-armed, bell

Feb. 2, 2024

US F-16 fighter crashes near base in South Korea

An F-16 Fighting Falcon belonging to the 8th Fighter Wing at the US air base in Gunsan, a port city in western South Korea, crashed at around 8:41 a.m. Wednesday. The crash happened during a routine training and the pilot was recovered after ejecting safely, according to Kunsan Air Base. “We are very thankful to the Republic of Korea rescue forces and all of our teammates who made the swift recovery of our pilot possible,” Col. Matthew C. Gaetke, 8th FW commander, said in a release.

Jan. 31, 2024

North Korea fires cruise missiles again after just 2 days

North Korea fired multiple cruise missiles on Tuesday into waters near its western coast, just two days after test-launching its new cruise missiles from a submarine. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said North Korea fired “several” cruise missiles into the sea at around 7 a.m., the details of which are being analyzed by South Korean and US intelligence authorities. “We are closely coordinating with the US and maintaining heightened vigilance and surveillance,”

Jan. 30, 2024

New JSA barracks named after 2 US Army officers killed in 1976 axe incident

A new front-line barracks of the United Nations Command Security Battalion has been named after two US Army officers who were killed in a 1976 axe incident as a tribute their sacrifices, the command said Tuesday. Major Arthur Bonifas and First Lieutenant Mark Barrett were killed by North Korean soldiers on August 18, 1976, in the Joint Security Area in the Demilitarized Zone while trimming a poplar tree to secure a clear view. The "Bonifas & Barrett Barracks" for US officers in Cam

Jan. 30, 2024