U.S. successfully tests THAAD missile defense system

The United States successfully conducted the latest test of its ballistic missile defense system early this month, with the THAAD and the Aegis systems working together to intercept multiple targets as intended in a layered defense design, according to a congressional report.The test was conducted in the vicinity of Wake Island in the western Pacific Ocean on Nov. 1, the Congressional Research Service said in a report on the Navy's Aegis ballistic missile defense program, citing the U.S. Missile

Nov. 16, 2015

Korea seeks to extend troops in Somalia, UAE

The Defense Ministry is seeking to extend by one year the stationing of its troops off the coast of Somalia and the United Arab Emirates, officials said Wednesday, citing persistent pirate threats and the need for constant security cooperation with Middle Eastern countries. The agency is also pushing to put in place legislation to facilitate its future overseas dispatch of forces and participation in non-U.N. peacekeeping operations. Currently, some 320 soldiers of the Cheonghae Unit have been t

Nov. 11, 2015

Korea gears up for extending PKO in Gulf of Aden, UAE

South Korea is moving to extend its peacekeeping operations in the Gulf of Aden and the United Arab Emirates, the Ministry of National Defense said Wednesday.Since early 2009, South Korea has stationed its Cheonghae military unit with a 4,000-ton Navy destroyer in the waters of the gulf, a hub of pirate activity situated in the Arabia Sea, as part of international efforts to help protect ships passing through the area. Some 500 South Korean vessels sail the region annually.The UAE, since 2011, h

Nov. 11, 2015

Military envisions combat forces deployment on island of Ulleung, East Sea

The military is envisioning the deployment of combat marine forces on the island of Ulleung in the East Sea, a move that could add military pressure on North Korea and enhance the defense of the easternmost islets of Dokdo, a military official said Thursday.If the deployment vision is put into action, it could form a U-shaped coastal defense system linking the group of islands near the inter-Korean border in the Yellow Sea and the southern resort island of Jeju to Ulleung, located about midway a

Nov. 5, 2015

Navy to perform regular defense drill on Dokdo next week

The Navy plans to carry out its regular defense exercise over Dokdo next week, the easternmost South Korean islets claimed by Japan, a Navy official said Wednesday.  "The exact date of the drill could be adjusted depending on weather conditions," the Navy official said.   The Coast Guard will also join the Dokdo drill, which South Korea has been conducting every spring and autumn since its inception in 1986.   A total of 10 warships, including a surface vessel and a guided-missile patrol killer,

Nov. 4, 2015

FM Yun to visit Iran, discuss North Korean nukes

Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se will visit Iran this week as the two countries seek to bolster bilateral ties in the wake of a nuclear deal with implications also for North Korea, the Foreign Ministry said Tuesday.  Yun's visit to Tehran on Saturday will be the first by a South Korean foreign minister in 14 years, and comes four months after Iran struck a landmark deal with the United States and other world powers to curb its uranium enrichment program in exchange for sanctions relief.  Yun is sch

Nov. 3, 2015

Korean companies target Asian arms market

BANGKOK ― More than 400 arms manufacturers from some 50 countries around the globe gathered to explore opportunities for future exports and technological sharing at a tradeshow in Thailand on Monday. Defense & Security 2015 kicked off in the Southeast Asian country’s capital for a four-day run, drawing the highest number of participating countries and businesses since its launch in 2003. Nine major ship and aircraft makers and other arms producers are running booths at a 424-square-meter Korean

Nov. 2, 2015

Allies endorse guideline to counter North Korea’s nuke, missile threats

South Korea and the U.S. on Monday approved an operational guideline to counter North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, reiterating their allied stance against the communist regime’s possible aggression and provocations.　During their annual Security Consultative Meeting in Seoul, Defense Minister Han Min-koo and his U.S. counterpart Ashton Carter also signed the allied plan to execute the “conditions-based” transfer of wartime operational control, which is expected to take place in the mid-20

Nov. 2, 2015

Any North Korean aggression, provocation won't be tolerated: Han, Carter

South Korea and the U.S. agreed on Monday that they will not tolerate any aggression or military provocation by North Korea, reaffirming the U.S.' commitment to provide "extended deterrence" against the communist country's growing nuclear threats.  "Defense Minister Han Min-koo and Defense Secretary Ashton Carter reaffirmed that any North Korean aggression or military provocation is not to be tolerated and the Republic of Korea and the U.S. would work shoulder-to-shoulder to demonstrate our comb

Nov. 2, 2015

Korea, U.S. to begin ministerial talks on defense issues

Defense ministers of South Korea and the United States were to hold their annual talks Monday to discuss a range of defense issues, including how to handle North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats.   The 47th Security Consultative Meeting between Defense Minister Han Min-koo and U.S. Defense Secretary Ashton Carter is scheduled to kick off in the late morning at the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul.   North Korea's nuclear and missile capacities are likely to be the main focus of t

Nov. 2, 2015

Korea to showcase defense prowess at Thai exhibition

BANGKOK ― The country’s leading arms producers are poised to boast their technological might and boost their potential for future exports at a trade fair in Thailand this week. Defense & Security 2015 will kick off Monday in the Southeast Asian country’s capital for a four-day run, bringing together about 25 defense agencies and 400 military service providers from about 50 countries. The biennial event is the largest military exhibition in the region, organizers said, having grown more than 30 p

Nov. 1, 2015

Seoul dismisses Lockheed’s claim over THAAD talks

South Korea’s Defense Ministry on Friday dismissed Lockheed Martin’s claim that Seoul and Washington have started formal consultations over a possible stationing of advanced U.S. missile assets on the peninsula. Mike Trotsky, vice president of air and missile defense at the U.S. defense giant, said at a news conference in Washington on Thursday that the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense system ― which the company manufactures ― is a subject of “ongoing policy discussions” between the two count

Oct. 30, 2015

Pentagon rejects Lockheed Martin's claim about THAAD talks with S. Korea

The U.S. Defense Department said Thursday no formal consultations have taken place with South Korea about the possible deployment of a THAAD missile defense battery to the country, rejecting a Lockheed Martin official's claim that discussions are already under way."We have made no final decision regarding the deployment of a U.S. THAAD unit to the Republic of Korea, nor have we had any formal consultations with the ROK government on this issue," Cmdr. Bill Urban, a U.S. Defense Department spokes

Oct. 30, 2015

S. Korean soldier killed in apparent suicide near border with N. Korea

A South Korean soldier was killed in what could be a suicide with a grenade near the western border with North Korea, military officials said Thursday.The incident took place at around 5 a.m. when the private first class moved about 100 meters away from a guard post where he and his fellow soldier were on patrol duty.The 20-year-old was killed at the scene as a grenade he was holding went off soon after he moved from the guard post.Military authorities presume that the soldier pulled out the gre

Oct. 29, 2015

Korea to step up anti-corruption efforts in arms contracts

The government announced Thursday it will bring in a special inspector and reinforce its auditing body to beef up its scrutiny of state defense procurement deals, which have often been fraught with corruption.The plan is part of an interim result based on the government's on-going probe into the defense procurement sector.As a succession of corruption-ridden transactions were revealed, the government launched a special investigation team a year earlier to look into suspicious procurement contrac

Oct. 29, 2015