U.S. suspends remains recovery in N. Korea

WASHINGTON (AP) ― The United States said Wednesday it is suspending efforts to recover remains of thousands of fallen service members in North Korea, the latest sign that a recent thaw in relations is over.The U.S. was in the process of resuming the hunt for remains missing from the 1950-53 Korean War that had been on hold since 2005, the only form of cooperation between the two militaries.But North Korea announced plans last week to launch a satellite into space by rocket ― a step the U.S. says

March 22, 2012

U.S. suspends war dead search over N. Korea missile plan

The United States said Wednesday it is suspending efforts to recover remains of thousands of fallen service members in North Korea, the latest sign that a recent thaw in relations is over.The U.S. was in the process of resuming the hunt for remains missing from the 1950-53 Korean War that had been o

March 22, 2012

Coast Guard deploys extra aircraft near Ieodo

The Coast Guard said Monday it has deployed additional aircraft on the south coast to patrol nearby waters, including the rock outcropping of Ieodo, to which China recently laid claim.The CN-235 fixed-wing airplane can fly for up to seven hours at a speed of 400 kilometers per hour and is fitted wit

March 19, 2012

Asia is world top weapon importer: SIPRI

Asia tops other regions when it comes to weapon imports, according to a study released Monday by the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI).Over the past five years, Asia and Oceania accounted for 44 percent in volume of conventional arm imports, the institute said.That compared wi

March 19, 2012

S. Korea to conduct military exercise on east coast

South Korea will conduct a large scale military exercise on its east coast ahead of the 2012 Seoul Nuclear Security Summit, official sources said Wednesday.The combined arms exercise involving Army, Air Force and Navy units will be carried out from noon through 9 p.m. Thursday with a focus on counte

March 14, 2012

USFK bans alcohol sales after 9 p.m. in Yongsan

The main U.S. Army installation in Seoul has banned the sale of alcohol after 9 p.m. under a new policy going into effect this week, a report said Tuesday.The Stars and Stripes, a U.S. military newspaper, said Col. William Huber, commander of the U.S. Army’s Yongsan Garrison, is seeking to promote “the health and welfare of the military community” and that the policy, which takes effect this Thursday, is meant to “standardize the hours for alcohol sales for Army and Air Force Exchange Service fa

March 13, 2012

South Korea’s bio-defenses are inadequate to meet threat

Seoul’s anti-smallpox measures fall far short of U.S.South Korea remains unprepared to deal with the smallpox virus, despite North Korea’s biological capabilities.While Pyongyang’s nuclear program remains central to security issues, the communist state is considered to have significant biological warfare capabilities.The Ministry of National Defense states in the defense white paper that North Korea has biological capabilities, including synthesizing the smallpox virus, and the U.S. regards Sout

March 12, 2012

S. Korea, Russia to hold first defense strategic talks on exchanges

South Korea and Russia are scheduled to hold their inaugural defense strategic talks this week in Moscow, discussing regional security and bilateral defense exchanges, officials here said Monday.The Defense Ministry here said Lim Kwan-bin, the South‘s deputy defense minister for policy, will travel to Russia this Thursday for the talks. Anatoly Antonov, Russia’s deputy defense minister handling international cooperation, will be his counterpart.“The two sides will talk about security situations

March 12, 2012

Special forces chief relieved for sex scandal

The commanding general of the country’s top special forces unit has been relieved of his duties for allegedly having inappropriate relations with a subordinate, Army officials said Friday.Brig. Gen. Choi Ik-bong, commander of the Special Warfare Command, also recently expressed his intention to retire from the service, officials added, after the Army launched an investigation into suspicions that he engaged in inappropriate relations with a female staff sergeant in 2009. Choi, then a major gener

March 9, 2012

‘N.K. notified U.S. of 2009 nuke test plan’

WASHINGTON (Yonhap News) ― North Korea delivered a “private message” to the U.S. government on its plan to conduct another nuclear test in 2009, along with its intent to enrich uranium, a former top White House official said in his book recounting the Obama administration’s policy on East Asia.“In April the North Koreans sent Washington a private message making several threats: to explode a nuclear device, to develop an ICBM capable of reaching the United States, to enrich uranium to enable them

March 9, 2012

U.S. soldiers reprimanded for violating curfew

The commanding general of the U.S. Forces Korea has called out officers and non-commissioned officers for violating an off-base curfew, a report said Friday.The Stars and Stripes, a U.S. military newspaper, said Gen. James D. Thurman issued a memo last month titled “Leader Discipline.” In it, Thurman wrote that 168 U.S. service members were apprehended for curfew violations between October and December last year, more than 50 of whom were NCOs or officers.“These violations from leaders, who are

March 9, 2012

Military holds course on Jeju naval base

Navy says it will review Jeju government request to stop construction workWork on the naval base on Jeju Island continued Thursday amid protests from activists and local residents.The contractors began using explosives to clear parts of the so-called Gureombi Rock on Wednesday and conducted further explosions on Thursday. The partial demolition of the 1.2 kilometer-long rock formation is scheduled to take place over the following three months.Protestors also continued to demonstrate against the

March 8, 2012

‘More than 40 N.K. soldiers killed or injured during Yeonpyeong battle’

More than 40 North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded when South Korea returned fire for the North’s artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island in November 2010, a media report said Friday, quoting a source familiar with the battalion responsible for the assault.The attack on the South Korean border island killed two marines and two civilians, causing inter-Korean relations to deteriorate to their worst level in decades. The number of North Korean casualties from South Korea’s return fire has not

March 2, 2012

Defense Ministry distributes guidelines on bioterrorism

The Ministry of National Defense has distributed its first guidelines on the military’s response to potential biological terror attacks by North Korea, a lawmaker said Friday. Rep. Song Young-sun of the ruling Saenuri Party said the ministry handed out the guidelines from late last year to early this year. About 130 pages long, the guidelines cover the armed forces’ response to bioterrorism at different echelons and swift medical support in the aftermath, Song added. The guidelines also detail c

March 2, 2012

More than 40 N. Korean soldiers killed or injured during Yeonpyeong battle

More than 40 North Korean soldiers were killed or wounded when South Korea returned fire for the North’s artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island in November 2010, a media report said Friday, quoting a source familiar with the battalion responsible for the assault.The attack on the South Korean border

March 2, 2012

S. Korea, U.S. begin drills amid N.K. threat

North Korea is once again upping the tension on the peninsula with threats of war as a series of military exercises kicked off with the Key Resolve exercise in South Korea on Monday.Key Resolve, which will continue until March 9, involves about 2,100 U.S. personnel and about 200,000 South Korean troops. In addition, exercise Foal Eagle will be held from March 1 to April 30, during which South Korean and U.S. troops will practice land, air and marine maneuvers.On Sunday, North Korean leader Kim J

Feb. 27, 2012