Military extends antivirus scheme for another three weeks

The defense ministry on Monday extended the current social distancing rules for the military for three weeks, which allow service members to take vacation in a limited manner. The Level 2 scheme, which was supposed to expire Sunday, will be in place until May 23 in line with the government's COVID-19 guidance, according to the ministry. It is the third-highest level in the five-tier alert system. Under the scheme, troops are allowed to go on vacation while strictly adhering to antivirus measur

May 3, 2021

KATUSA soldier tests positive for virus after J&J vaccine shot

A Korean Augmentation to the US Army (KATUSA) soldier has tested positive for the new coronavirus after receiving a Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine shot, officials said. The soldier, stationed at Camp Casey in Dongducheon, 40 kilometers north of Seoul, was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 on Thursday upon returning to duty from leave. The soldier reportedly received the single-dose Janssen vaccine in early April. The service member last visited Camp Casey on Wednesday and is cur

May 2, 2021

S. Korea, US and Japan discuss expanding security ties

The South Korean, US and Japanese military chiefs on Thursday discussed deepening security cooperation amid a growing threat from North Korea to promote peace and stability in the region, at their first in-person three-way talks in Hawaii since the COVID-19 outbreak in January a year earlier. The talks, held on the sidelines of a change-of-command ceremony at the US Indo-Pacific Command, opened as the US seeks to establish what it calls a rules-based international order in the Indo-Pacific regi

April 30, 2021

US conducts 2 tests for THAAD-Patriot system integration last year: government report

The US missile defense agency conducted two missile flight tests last year to integrate its Patriot and THAAD missile systems, but they were unsuccessful due to software problems, a US government report has showed. The US is working to upgrade its Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) batteries around the world, including one in South Korea, to add advanced radar and to integrate the system with Patriot missiles. According to the report by the US Government Accountability Office (GAO), t

April 30, 2021

Military reports 4 new COVID-19 cases

Three soldiers and an airman tested positive for the new coronavirus, the defense ministry said Friday, the latest in a series of infections at barracks across the nation. The four service members, all from different units, were confirmed to have been infected following their recent vacation, bringing the total number of infections among the military population to 784, according to the ministry. Nationwide, South Korea reported 661 more COVID-19 cases, including 642 local infections, raising t

April 30, 2021

Watchdog to probe military for abuse allegations in COVID response

South Korea’s National Human Rights Commission said Thursday that it will launch an investigation into allegations that the military violated rights of conscripts who said they had been fed poorly and denied access to bathrooms because of the COVID-19 response. The previous week, an Army conscript prompted public outcry when he revealed on Facebook that he had been given insufficient meals while in quarantine, showing a picture of what appeared to be a nearly empty tray. The militar

April 29, 2021

Military reports 3 more coronavirus cases

The military reported three additional coronavirus cases, the defense ministry said Thursday. Of them, a service member of the armed forces athletic corps in the central city of Mungyeong was confirmed to have contracted COVID-19 after participating in an international competition abroad, while a soldier in the northeastern county of Inje tested positive after newly joining the Army, according to the ministry. In Yangju, north of Seoul, an officer was found to be infected after a family member

April 29, 2021

USFK to resume administering J&J vaccine this week

US Forces Korea (USFK) will resume the administration of the Johnson & Johnson (J&J) vaccine to its members this week, the US military has said, after a two-week suspension of its use amid concerns over blood clot cases. The decision to resume the use of J&J's Janssen vaccine Friday was based on the joint recommendation of the US Food and Drug Administration and the Centers for Disease Control to end the temporary pause of the COVID-19 vaccine use for all persons aged 18 and older,

April 29, 2021

Defense chief says NK missiles in last month's test-firing flew about 600 km

Defense Minister Suh Wook said Wednesday that the ballistic missiles North Korea test-fired last month flew about 600 kilometers, revising the military’s initial assessment. 　After the North‘s March 25 test-firing of two short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, the military said their flight range was 450 km. North Korean state media has claimed that the missiles flew 600 km. 　“We believe that they flew about 600 km,” Suh said in a parliamentary session when

April 28, 2021

Army chief apologizes over excessive antivirus rules for soldiers

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Nam Yeong-shin apologized Wednesday over criticism that a boot camp and some other units enforced excessive anti-coronavirus rules in violation of human rights, such as restricting bathroom access. Nam offered the apology after convening an emergency meeting of senior commanders and ordered them to review the Army's health protection rules from scratch and come up with measures to prevent violating soldiers' rights in the course of its fight against COVID-19. "At

April 28, 2021

Defense ministry seeks to secure new firing ranges for USFK

The defense ministry said Wednesday it is trying to secure new "large-scale" firing ranges for the US Forces Korea (USFK) as the American military has complained about limited access to the existing ones due to strong protests from residents. In a report presented to the National Assembly, the ministry said that it will push to secure large-scale training sites as replacements of the existing ranges as part of its longer-term plan to resolve ongoing conflicts between the USFK and resi

April 28, 2021

[Newsmaker] Disaffected young men call for gender equality in conscription

South Korea’s mandatory military service is back in the limelight as younger men step up calls for conscription for women as a matter of gender equality. But experts say this movement faces a long road ahead. The fresh debate about subjecting both men and women to mandatory military service was sparked by ruling Democratic Party Rep. Park Yong-jin, who suggested revamping the conscription system as part of his 2022 presidential election campaign. Park proposed an all-volunteer military o

April 28, 2021

Military begins vaccinating service members over 30

The defense ministry on Wednesday began administering AstraZeneca's coronavirus vaccine to service members aged 30 and older, it said, amid growing concerns over the spread of the virus in barracks. Authorities plan to complete giving the first vaccine doses to 126,000 troops over the age of 30 in the next two weeks in the full-fledged launch of a vaccine campaign in the military. Receiving the vaccine is voluntary, but over 80 percent of the troops subject to the vaccination have agreed to t

April 28, 2021

JCS chairman heads to Hawaii for talks with US, Japanese counterparts

Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Won In-choul was to depart for Hawaii on Wednesday for talks with his US and Japanese counterparts to discuss the security situation in the region, his office said. Won is scheduled to meet with Gen. Mark Milley and Gen. Koji Yamazaki on Thursday (Hawaii time) to discuss ways to strengthen "multilateral cooperation to promote peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula and in Northeast Asia," according to the military. Such trilateral face-to

April 28, 2021

[Newsmaker] Fighting dirty? Army bans bathing as anti-COVID-19 measure for recruits

The South Korean Army deprived recruits of basic hygiene as part of its anti-COVID-19 measures, a civic group revealed, criticizing the military for neglecting soldiers’ basic rights. The Center for Military Human Rights Korea said in a statement Monday that the Korea Army Training Center was too strict in enforcing its COVID-19 prevention measures for recruits, even barring access to basic hygiene options during their weekslong training period. According to the nonprofit human rights ad

April 27, 2021

Military to complete first dose vaccination of troops over 30s in 2 weeks

The military plans to complete giving the first doses of coronavirus vaccines to service members aged 30 or older in the next two weeks, the defense ministry said Tuesday, amid sporadic infections reported in barracks across the country. Starting Wednesday, 126,000 service members over the age of 30 will receive AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccine shots in a full-fledged launch of a vaccination campaign in the military, the ministry said. "Our plan is to wrap up vaccinating those age 30 or old

April 27, 2021

S. Korea develops new radar technology capable of detecting stealth fighters

A state-run defense development agency said Tuesday it has completed the development of a new high power and high sensitivity radar technology capable of detecting stealth fighter jets. The new technology will be used for wide area surveillance to monitor military aircraft operated by neighboring countries near the Korean Peninsula, according to the Agency for Defense Development. "Securing a homegrown radar technology to detect warplanes with a low radar cross section was essential as th

April 27, 2021

British aircraft carrier to visit S. Korea this year

A British aircraft carrier strike group will make a port call at the southeastern city of Busan later this year, Seoul's defense ministry said Tuesday, as the European country seeks to expand its presence in the Indo-Pacific region. South Korea has accepted Britain's request for its HMS Queen Elizabeth aircraft carrier to make a port call at Busan in the second half to boost "bilateral defense cooperation and friendly exchanges," the ministry said. Accompanied by multiple warships an

April 27, 2021

Defense ministry to check meal service for quarantined soldiers

The defense ministry said Monday it will launch inspections into growing complaints from soldiers that they were fed poor quality meals while in COVID-19 quarantine. Some service members have raised complaints over the quality of meals they were provided while in coronavirus quarantine upon returning from vacation, posting pictures of food that some even likened to prison meals. Some others also voiced complaints about the bad sanitation of temporary quarantine facilities. "The ministry

April 26, 2021

Korea, China not in talks over Quad alliance: Defense Ministry

South Korea and China have not discussed the Quad alliance, a US-led democratic coalition comprising the US, Australia, India and Japan to contain an increasingly assertive China, the Ministry of National Defense said Monday. “It’s an unequivocal no. We have not been in talks on the matter and on whether we will join the group,” ministry spokesperson Boo Seung-chan said, referring to a report that Beijing had repeatedly asked Seoul whether it planned to join the group amid gro

April 26, 2021