Russia says airspace intrusion was not intended: Cheong

Russia has told South Korea that the latest airspace intrusion by one of its warplanes was not intentional and was probably caused by a technical glitch, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Wednesday. Expressing "deep regret" over the latest incident, Russia said that a technical problem probably caused the plane to intrude into areas it had not planned to go to."Russia said its defense ministry will immediately launch a probe and take necessary steps," Yoon Do-han, se

July 24, 2019

S. Korea fires warning shots at intruding Russian warplane

A Russian military aircraft intruded into South Korea’s airspace above the East Sea twice on Tuesday, prompting Air Force fighter jets to fire warning shots in response, military officials said. Two other Russian warplanes and two Chinese bombers also entered South Korea’s air defense identification zone without prior notice.According to the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the Russian warplane, identified as an A-50 -- an airborne early warning and control aircraft -- entered South Korea&rsqu

July 23, 2019

Seoul lodges complaint with Russia over airspace intrusion

South Korea sent a message of “strong complaint” to Russia over its military aircraft’s violation of Korean airspace, Cheong Wa Dae said Tuesday. Seoul has also filed formal complaints to China over its military aircrafts entering the Korea Air Defense Identification Zone. Earlier in the day, a number of Chinese and Russian military aircrafts engaged in a joint drill entered the KADIZ, with one Russian plane twice entering Korean airspace over the Dokdo Islets in the East Sea.

July 23, 2019

Russian aircraft violates S. Korea's airspace above East Sea twice

A Russian warplane violated South Korea's airspace above the East Sea twice Tuesday, prompting the Air Force to fire warning shots in the first such airspace violation by a foreign airplane ever, military officers here said.The Russian A-50 early warning and control aircraft trespassed in the territorial sky above the East Sea near South Korea's easternmost islets of Dokdo earlier in the day for two brief periods in breach of international treaties, according to officers from the Joint Chiefs of

July 23, 2019

Embattled defense minister visits Army command, calls for tighter discipline

Defense Minister Jeong Kyeog-doo visited an Army command near Seoul on Monday in the wake of a series of incidents that highlighted lax discipline in the military and prompted opposition parties to demand his resignation.    The Ground Operations Command, located in Yongin, southeast of Seoul, was the first destination of his tours to key armed services headquarters this week, which will also take him to the Navy, the Air Force and the Marine Corps operations commands. &

July 22, 2019

Indonesia seeks reduction in share of expenses in joint fighter jet project

Indonesia is seeking a reduction of its share of expenses in the fighter jet development project with South Korea, as it is running about 300 billion won ($254 million) in arrears. According to Indonesian news reports, Indonesia’s Coordinating Minister for Politics and Security Wiranto reiterated the need to renegotiate the deal for the Korean Fighter Experimental, citing the government’s lack of budget.Korea and Indonesia have been working together to develop a new fighter jet for t

July 22, 2019

Moon mentions responsibility for cases of lax military discipline

President Moon Jae-in said Friday he feels responsible for recent cases of lax military discipline and ordered his defense minister and military chief to take stern countermeasures."The people are concerned about the military's discipline and security posture due to several recent incidents. As the commander-in-chief of the armed forces, I feel responsible," Moon said in a lunch meeting with retired military leaders at Cheong Wa Dae. The "several recent incidents" mentioned b

July 19, 2019

Preparations under way for Korea-US exercise this year: Seoul ministry

South Korea and the United States will conduct a joint military exercise as scheduled, the defense ministry said Thursday, though North Korea warned that the drill could scuttle ongoing efforts to resume its nuclear talks with the US.On Tuesday, North Korea warned that the planned "19-2 Dong Maeng" exercise between Seoul and Washington will affect the prospects for its working-level nuclear talks with the US. The planned joint exercise is meant to verify Seoul's capabilities for the en

July 18, 2019

[News Focus] Military under fire, marred by lack of discipline, cover-ups

South Korea’s military has come under fire after a series of incidents involving false testimonies and security failures, showing laxity in discipline.Opposition parties have submitted a motion calling for the dismissal of Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo, holding him responsible for the incidents. In recent weeks, Jeong has tendered public apologies twice over the military’s failure to detect a North Korean boat that reached a South Korean sea port on the east coast.Only a day

July 17, 2019

Pentagon: S. Korea, US preparing for joint exercise despite NK's warning

South Korea and the United States are preparing to stage a joint military exercise this fall, the Pentagon said Tuesday, after North Korea warned the drill will affect the prospects of working-level nuclear talks between the two countries.The North's foreign ministry issued the warning Tuesday, arguing that the "19-2 Dong Maeng" exercise, slated for around August, runs counter to the commitment that US President Donald Trump made when he held a surprise meeting with North Korean leader

July 17, 2019

Military investigating report of periscope-like object off Haengdam Island Service Area: JCS

An object that looks like a periscope of a submarine was spotted in the waters around Haengdam Island Service Area on the Seohaean Expressway, in South Chungcheong Province, Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Wednesday. Police on patrol found the object “moving towards the north” and reported it to the military. The military said it is running an investigation, though it views it unlikely that a submarine would have passed through the area due to the shallow depth of the water

July 17, 2019

2 Japanese defense attaches recalled after secretly obtaining military secrets: report

Two Japanese defense attaches in South Korea have returned back to their home country after they were found to have obtained classified military information, a local daily reported Tuesday. According to Dong-A Ilbo, the Japanese defense attaches obtained 54 classified military documents on information related to North Korea from a former official of the Korea Defense Intelligence Command and 20 documents from a North Korean defector.  Following the prosecution’s indictment of the info

July 16, 2019

Govt. draws up five-year plan on quality control of military supplies

The arms procurement agency on Monday announced a five-year plan to better ensure the quality of military supplies so as to boost the safety of servicepersons and enhance the competitiveness of homegrown materials.Under the blueprint, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration plans to set quality criteria in major development phases and set up and run a support team in charge of checking if products fully meet requirements.   The plan also calls for assigning "patrol" of

July 15, 2019

Naval officer under probe for allegedly coercing subordinate's false confession

A Navy officer is under investigation on charges of forcing a soldier to make false confessions in an investigation launched after an unidentified person was found inside his naval base last week, officials said Friday.On July 4, soldiers on guard duty found the unidentified person near the ammunition depot inside the Navy's Second Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul. When asked for a countersign, the person failed to give an answer and ran away, according to the Navy. An i

July 12, 2019

Defense Ministry denies reports of Japan’s involvement in UNC

Seoul’s Ministry of National Defense on Thursday denied reports that the United Nations Command is seeking Japanese involvement in its operations.  “Japan was not a combatant in the Korean War, so cannot become a sending state,” a Defense Ministry official said, ruling out the possibility of Japan sending troops or participating in the UNC without Seoul’s involvement. A sending state is a country that provides troops, materials and other support necessary in a war si

July 11, 2019

Soldier jumps into river after unit's coastal operations failure

An Army soldier jumped off a Han River bridge to his death, officials said Tuesday, after his unit came under fire for failing to detect a North Korean boat's arrival at a South Korean port last month.The 21-year-old private first class from the Army's 23rd division in Samcheok, Gangwon Province, threw himself into the Han River on Monday night. After being rescued, the solider, whose identity was withheld, was rushed a nearby hospital, but died soon after, Col. Jeon Ha-kyu said.  The man w

July 9, 2019

S. Korea to send rotational troops to South Sudan

A new contingent of South Korean troops will be deployed to South Sudan later this month to carry out UN peacekeeping operations, the Army said Monday. A send-off ceremony took place in Incheon, west of Seoul, for more than 280 rotational troops to serve at the Hanbit unit in the African country for eight months.They are the 11th batch of troops to be sent there since South Korea began deployment in 2013, the Army said, adding that some of them will depart for the country later in the day, while

July 8, 2019

Military to take sweeping sea border security measures

The military plans to deploy an additional naval ship, increase patrol flights by manned and unmanned aircraft and install more radars on and offshore to beef up security of the sea border with North Korea, a Defense Ministry report showed Sunday.The ministry reported the measures to the National Assembly as part of efforts to close holes in border security following revelations that the military failed to detect a North Korean boat until it traveled all the way to the port of Samcheok, about 13

July 7, 2019

Moon reprimands national security advisor for undetected NK boat

President Moon Jae-in has reprimanded a national security advisor for security loopholes that allowed a North Korean boat to cross the eastern maritime border and float undetected in South Korean waters for several days, his office said Wednesday.Moon delivered a strong warning to Kim You-geun, deputy director of national security, over the security failure in the maritime border patrol, Cheong Wa Dae spokesperson Ko Min-jung said in a text message to reporters.The measure reflects Moon's view t

July 4, 2019

Government admits failure over N.Korean boat incident, denies cover-up

The government on Wednesday admitted to security failure, but rejected the accusation that it attempted to downplay the incident in which a North Korean boat arrived at a South Korea seaport undetected. Announcing the result of a joint government investigation, the government said it reprimanded top military chiefs and dismissed an Army commander who was in charge of the surveillance operation in the coastal area where the incident occurred.A small wooden boat carrying four North Koreans was fou

July 3, 2019