Nearly 60% of Koreans support allowing pop artists to delay military service

Almost 60 percent of South Koreans are in support of allowing distinguished pop culture artists to postpone their mandatory military service, a poll showed Thursday. According to the poll conducted on 500 people aged 18 or above by Realmeter, 58.8 percent of the respondents said they favor the government efforts to revise a relevant law. The survey was carried out on Wednesday and commissioned by the radio channel TBS. Another 31.4 percent said they object to the plan, while the remaining 9.8

Oct. 15, 2020

US military chief vows to provide 'extended deterrence' to S. Korea

The United States has reaffirmed its commitment to South Korea's security, including providing "extended deterrence," during annual talks between the military chiefs of the two countries, both sides said Wednesday. US Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman (JCS) Gen. Mark Milley made the remark Tuesday during the 45th Military Committee Meeting (MCM) via videoconference with his South Korean counterpart, Gen. Won In-choul, days after North Korea unveiled a massive new intercontinental missile

Oct. 14, 2020

Military forecast to experience troop shortage after 2032

South Korea's military is expected to run short of troops from around 2032 due to a shrinking population amid low birthrates, the military recruitment agency chief said Tuesday. The Military Manpower Administration chief, Mo Jong-hwa, made the remark during a parliamentary audit session, saying detailed discussions should begin to come up with measures to cope with the expected shortage. From 2032, Mo said, the country will have only about 180,000 people joining the military a year when at le

Oct. 13, 2020

Defense chief flies to US to discuss wartime role transfer

South Korea’s Defense Minister Suh Wook traveled to the United States on Tuesday to discuss the plan for Seoul to take over wartime operational control from Washington at an annual security meeting. Breaking with convention, Suh made the trip to Washington on Korea’s Multi Role Tanker Transport, an aerial refueling tanker, partly to display the Air Force’s growing prowess and partly to reduce the risk of contracting the coronavirus on a civilian flight. “The handover o

Oct. 13, 2020

[Newsmaker] Illegal military service exemptions rise steadily every year

The number of illegal exemptions from mandatory military service detected by local authorities has surged nearly 60 percent over the past five years, a ruling party lawmaker said Tuesday, calling for tougher punishments for draft dodgers. Rep. Ahn Gyu-back of the Democratic Party, citing the Military Manpower Administration's data, said the number of people booked by police on charges of illegally receiving an exemption from military duty increased 59.6 percent from 47 in 2015 to 75 in 2019. T

Oct. 13, 2020

S. Korea pushes to allow prominent pop celebrities to defer mandatory military service

The government is working on a plan to allow pop culture celebrities credited for contributing to improving the country's image to postpone their mandatory military service, the military recruitment agency said Tuesday. The plan came amid talk of whether K-pop boy band BTS members should be given such favors as an exemption from or postponement of the military service in recognition of their contribution to South Korea's national image with their unprecedented Billboard-topping hit. Defense M

Oct. 13, 2020

[Feature] Should BTS get military exemption?

As K-pop juggernaut BTS takes the global K-pop craze to new heights, South Korea is again debating whether or not to conscript the seven young men for their mandatory active duty. Talk of special treatment resurfaced on Sept. 3, two days after the latest single “Dynamite” claimed the coveted top spot on the US Billboard Hot 100 singles chart -- a first in the history of Korean music and a “splendid feat” that boosted national pride, according to President Moon Jae-in.

Oct. 10, 2020

Defense chiefs of S. Korea, US reaffirm commitment to alliance

SEOUL/WASHINGTON -- Defense Minister Suh Wook and US Secretary of Defense Mark Esper held phone talks Thursday and reaffirmed their commitment to a strong alliance and a firm combined defense posture, the defense ministry said. The call marked the first talks between the two since Suh took office as defense minister last month. "The two ministers reaffirmed the importance of strengthening the ironclad South Korea-US alliance and closely cooperating on defense issues," the ministry sa

Oct. 8, 2020

Defense chief says military exemption for BTS members not under consideration

The defense ministry is not considering granting South Korean K-pop boy band BTS an exemption of mandatory military service, but a deferral could be an option, Defense Minister Suh Wook said Wednesday. "Various social consensus should be formed, but at this stage, we are not considering an exception to the military duties," Suh told lawmakers during a parliamentary audit. His remark came amid a growing debate over whether the seven-member group, with an unprecedented Billboard-toppi

Oct. 7, 2020

NK to showcase strategic weapons on anniversary: defense minister

North Korea is preparing events for the Workers’ Party’s founding anniversary this Saturday, and a military parade is one of the choices to stage a show of force with new strategic weapons, South Korea’s Defense Minister Suh Wook told a parliamentary audit Wednesday. Suh did not provide get into detail regarding what weapons the North would unveil, but added that the isolated country appears poised to remain in wait-and-see mode. North Korean experts expect the regime to unvei

Oct. 7, 2020

BTS should be given preferential treatment for military: lawmaker

A prominent ruling party lawmaker said Tuesday members of K-pop superstar BTS should be offered preferential treatment in terms of their mandatory military duties. "Why is it OK for Son Heung-min but not for BTS?," Rep. Noh Woong-rae of the ruling Democratic Party said in a radio interview with CBS, referring to the military exemption for South Korean footballer Son of the English Premier League's Tottenham Hotspur. Son secured an exemption in September 2018, when the Korean national

Oct. 6, 2020

Military chiefs of S. Korea, US vow to strengthen combined defense posture

New Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) chairman Gen. Won In-choul held phone talks with his US counterpart Mark Milley on Tuesday and vowed to strengthen the combined defense posture based on the ironclad alliance, the military said. The phone call marked the first talks between the two since Won took office about two weeks ago. "The JCS chairmen of the two countries evaluated that a close cooperative relationship is maintained between the military authorities of South Korea and the US, and agr

Oct. 6, 2020

Air Force seeks name for fighter jet

South Korea’s Air Force is looking for a name for its next-generation fighter jet, known by the project name KF-X. Citizens can submit one candidate name each by the end of this month, and three winners will receive the Air Force Chief’s recognition awards and model aircraft. The KF-X project is the largest undertaking ever by the Korean military, with some $15 billion earmarked for investment until production. The prototype will be released early next year, with another five year

Oct. 4, 2020

US conducts training, reconnaissance missions in East Sea

The United States recently conducted military training and reconnaissance missions in and around the Korean Peninsula amid fragile inter-Korean relations and an upcoming North Korean military parade to mark the anniversary of the country's ruling party. A pair of B-1B Lancers took off from US Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, to conduct a joint and bilateral "Bomber Task Force" mission with a F-15J aircraft from the Japanese Air Self-Defense Force in the East Sea on Sept. 30, according t

Oct. 4, 2020

Controversy stirs over bidding process in Navy's destroyer project

Controversy has been heating up over the South Korean Navy's next-generation destroyers as a series of legal issues in the bidding process continued to pop up, industry sources said Saturday. In mid-July, Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co. submitted their bids for the design of the 6,000-ton class destroyers, called the Korea Destroyer Next Generation (KDDX). Before the announcement of the prime bidder for the project in October, the country's ar

Oct. 3, 2020

DMZ's image more associated with 'war' this year than last year: survey

The image of the Demilitarized Zone separating South and North Korea is associated more with war this year than last year, a local research institute said, as the inter-Korean peace process has stalled. The Gyeonggi Research Institute, a think tank run by the government of Gyeonggi Province, said that a survey of 550 South Koreans, 150 Germans, 150 Chinese and 150 Irish people showed that "war" was the No. 1 image with 6.7 percent among more than 20 keywords associated with the DMZ.

Sept. 30, 2020

Discussions on US intermediate missile deployment in S. Korea premature: US envoy

The United States is not ready yet to talk with allies about deployment of its specific military capabilities, a senior US official said Monday, as Washington is considering deploying intermediate-range missiles in East Asia to counterbalance China's growing capabilities.    Marshall Billingslea, special US presidential envoy for arms control, also said in an interview with Yonhap News Agency and other local media outlets in Seoul that North Korea's recent apology for the killing of a

Sept. 28, 2020

Coast Guard, Navy continue search for deceased fisheries official despite NK warning

South Korea's Coast Guard and Navy continued their search Sunday for the body and belongings of a fisheries official shot to death by the North Korean military at sea last week despite Pyongyang's warnings against "intrusion" into its waters. The authorities mobilized 39 vessels, including 16 naval ships, and six aircraft for their operations in the front-line areas near the Northern Limit Line (NLL), a de facto inter-Korean sea border, where the 47-year-old official went missing Mon

Sept. 27, 2020

S. Korea to repatriate 117 sets of remains of Chinese troops

The remains of 117 Chinese soldiers killed in the 1950-53 Korean War were casketed Saturday to be sent back to their homeland the following day, the defense ministry said. In 2014, Seoul pledged to repatriate the remains of fallen Chinese soldiers in a symbolic gesture of friendship, and 599 sets have since been returned, including 10 last year. This year's repatriation ceremony will take place at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, on Sunday, according to the ministry. Of the tot

Sept. 26, 2020

Civilian killed by NK left no signs suggesting defection

The South Korean public official who was shot to death by North Korean officials Tuesday after going missing near the inter-Korean maritime border reportedly left no traces suggesting he may have intended to defect to the North. The Incheon Coast Guard said in a press briefing Thursday that the civilian did not leave any will or evidence of a planned defection to North Korea. The Coast Guard said it didn’t find his cellphone or any notes in the small cabin of the boat the civilian was on

Sept. 25, 2020