[Newsmaker] Military police recommend airman be charged with AWOL in 'emperor-like military service' case

Military police wrapped up an investigation into allegations that an enlisted airman enjoyed preferential treatment due to his father's influence, recommending that the military prosecution charge him with going absent without leave, officials said Monday. The probe began in June after an online petition at the presidential office website claimed that the conscript enjoyed a variety of privileges, including having a noncommissioned officer do errands for him, thanks to his father's position as

Aug. 10, 2020

USFK eases anti-virus restrictions peninsula-wide amid slowdown in new cases

US Forces Korea (USFK) eased anti-coronavirus restrictions for its personnel across the peninsula Monday, allowing service members and their families to dine at restaurants and conduct other off-base activities except for visiting bars and clubs. The lowering of the Health Protection Condition (HPCON) level by one notch to the second-lowest level of "Bravo" from "Charlie" came as South Korea has seen a marked slowdown in the number of new COVID-19 cases. USFK lowered the H

Aug. 10, 2020

Defense Ministry plans to build ballistic missile submarines

The Defense Ministry said Monday it plans to roll out enhanced submarines in the next five years that will be capable of carrying more ballistic missiles, as part of a long-term initiative to beef up South Korea’s military capabilities. It also plans to develop its own interceptor system like Israel’s Iron Dome to defend the country’s core infrastructure in the capital area against North Korea’s long-range artillery threats. “We have in mind 3,600- and 4,000-ton

Aug. 10, 2020

S. Korea to develop indigenous Iron Dome-like interceptor system against NK long-range artillery

South Korea will begin developing its own interceptor system like Israel's Iron Dome in the next five years to defend the country's core infrastructure in the capital area against North Korea's long-range artillery threats, the defense ministry said Monday. Unveiling its defense blueprint for 2021-2025, the ministry also said it will officially begin procedures to acquire a light aircraft carrier next year and start the production of a homegrown fighter jet which is currently under developmen

Aug. 10, 2020

USFK to ease anti-virus restrictions peninsula-wide next week

US Forces Korea (USFK) said Friday it will ease anti-virus restrictions for its personnel across the Korean Peninsula next week, allowing service members to dine at restaurants and conduct other off-base activities except for visiting bars and clubs. The decision to lower the Health Protection Condition (HPCON) level by one notch to the second-lowest level of "Bravo" from the current "Charlie" comes as South Korea has seen a slowdown in the number of new coronavirus cases.

Aug. 7, 2020

[Contribution] Korea’s first locally-built AESA radar will become the eyes of KF-X fighter jets

Radar experts call airborne radar the “flower of radar” for all the cutting-edge technologies used in its development. It is also the most difficult and challenging R&D field, as only a limited number of advanced countries have the original, proprietary technologies. Dubbed “the eyes of KF-X,” active electronically scanned array, or AESA, radar is the core gadget for Korea’s indigenous KF-X fighter jets, which provides detection and tracking of multiple air,

Aug. 6, 2020

[Herald Interview] Arms procurement chief lauds ‘hidden’ defense tech champions

Wang Jung-hong, a state auditor for 29 years, was appointed chief of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration in August 2018, amid hope for fairness, openness and greater accountability in arms procurement deals for the South Korean military, ranked the world’s sixth powerful.   Wang’s mission as the chief weapons buyer for the armed forces, however, went far beyond that. As the country looked to spend more money on buying locally built weapons, he forged a team, includi

Aug. 4, 2020

US names new envoy for defense cost-sharing talks

WASHINGTON -- The US State Department has named a new envoy for defense cost-sharing negotiations with South Korea and other nations, a department spokesperson said Monday. Donna Welton, who recently served as assistant chief of mission at the US Embassy in Afghanistan, will succeed Jim DeHart, who was appointed last week as the US coordinator for the Arctic region. "As Mr. DeHart's successor, Ms. Welton will pick up where Jim left off in regards to the ROK Special Measures Agreement, th

Aug. 4, 2020

Military embarrassed by security cameras mapping defector’s escape

The 24-year-old North Korean defector who recently returned to the North was detected multiple times by the South Korean military before reaching his destination, an internal investigation revealed Friday. South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said the defector, identified only by the surname Kim, took a cab to Ganghwado, an island west of Incheon bordering the North, crawled through a drainpipe and cut through rusty barbed-wire fences. It took Kim about two hours to complete the journey,

July 31, 2020

S. Korea's first military satellite successfully reaches orbit

South Korea's first military communications satellite successfully reached its final position in the geostationary orbit Friday, 10 days after its liftoff, the arms procurement agency said. The Anasis-II, launched last week from Florida atop a Falcon 9 Block 5 rocket manufactured by US commercial space firm SpaceX, arrived at the position in fixed orbit some 36,000 kilometers above the Earth at 7:11 a.m. (Korean time), according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration. The South Ko

July 31, 2020

Southeastern counties agree to co-host new military airport

The defense ministry announced Thursday that two southeastern counties have agreed to co-host a new military airport, a breakthrough that will speed up the relocation process that had stalled for months. According to the ministry, the counties of Gunwi and Uiseong in North Gyeongsang Province have come to an agreement on jointly hosting the airport, which will be moved from the southeastern metropolitan city of Daegu. The ministry said in January that Gunwi and Uiseong would be the site for t

July 30, 2020

S. Korea, US have 'firm shared understanding' on importance of USFK: defense ministry

South Korea and the United States share a "firm" understanding on the role and importance of the US Forces Korea (USFK), the defense ministry said Thursday, amid concerns Washington may try to cut USFK troop levels just as it did for troops in Germany. The US military earlier announced the plan that calls for withdrawing about 12,000 troops out of 36,000 US forces and relocating about half of them to other regions in Europe to keep Russia in check. Addressing the possibility that Pr

July 30, 2020

[News Analysis] Fettered for decades, Seoul to strengthen space push

With a major hurdle lifted on rocket propellants, South Korea is set to double up its efforts to build a foothold in space, eyeing, above anything else, the country’s first ship to land on the moon and its first spy satellite, experts said Wednesday.  President Moon Jae-in, addressing the revision in a Korea-US missile pact announced the previous day, signaled a push to secure “complete missile sovereignty,” while expressing hopes to see industries affected by the latest

July 29, 2020

Military to resume reserve forces' training in September in scaled-back manner over coronavirus

The defense ministry decided to hold this year's regular training sessions for reserve forces in a scaled-back manner starting in September after monthslong delay due to the new coronavirus, officials said Wednesday. The training for the country's 2.75 million-strong forces was supposed to kick off in March across the nation, but it has been put off several times due to COVID-19. South Korean men are required to go through one training session of one to three days in duration per year as rese

July 29, 2020

Military to halt jailing rule-breaking soldiers

Starting next Wednesday, soldiers who break rules while on active duty will not face detention at a guardhouse. The military is putting an end to the 124-year-old practice, which critics say constitutes unlawful confinement. Currently, rule-breaking soldiers can be detained in military lockup facilities for up to 15 days, and time in detention does not count toward their compulsory terms of about two years in the military.  The detention system, in place since 1896, has been called uncon

July 28, 2020

S. Korea, US to hold summertime exercise for OPCON transfer test, readiness: ministry

South Korea and the United States plan to use an upcoming combined exercise to better prepare for Seoul to regain wartime operational control of its forces from Washington and to maintain their joint readiness posture, Seoul's defense ministry said Tuesday. It is the first time that the government has confirmed the two countries will stage a major annual exercise this summer, which has drawn keen attention following the cancellation of their springtime one due to COVID-19. "During the 2

July 28, 2020

12 more USFK-affiliated Americans test positive for new coronavirus

Seven more American service members and five dependents tested positive for the new coronavirus upon arrival in South Korea, the US Forces Korea said Monday. Five service personnel and three family members arrived at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, on US government-chartered flights from the United States on July 14, 19, 20 and 22. The remainder arrived at Incheon International Airport, west of Seoul, from their home country on separate commercial flights on

July 27, 2020

Army's UH-1H choppers retired after 52 years of service

The Army's decades-old fleet of UH-1H helicopters are being retired this week, with South Korea's homegrown multi-role chopper Surion replacing them, the military said Monday.  The Army held a retirement ceremony, presided over by Aviation Operations Command Commander Maj. Gen. Kang Sun-young, commemorating UH-1H's 52 years of service to defend the country and its people. The Army has operated 129 UH-1H choppers. They flew an accumulated 792,000 hours over 146 million kilometers during

July 27, 2020

Hanwha ships prototype fighting vehicles to Australia in W5tr deal

CHANGWON, South Gyeongsang Province -- South Korean defense firm Hanwha Defense said Sunday that it was shipping two Redback infantry fighting vehicles to the Australian Army for testing, part of a project worth roughly 5 trillion won ($4.1 billion). The Australian military will decide whether to make a final offer on the Korean-made vehicles by late 2022, after testing them from November to August next year.　 　 The Redback and Germany’s Rheinmetall Defence are shortlisted for the count

July 26, 2020

Hanwha Defense to send prototypes of new armored vehicle to Australia

CHANGWON -- Hanwha Defense Co., a South Korean defense manufacturer, said Sunday it will deliver the prototypes of its newly developed armored vehicle to Australia as part of its bid for Canberra's $4.6 billion project to buy new infantry fighting vehicles. Three trial products of the new model, dubbed "Redback," will be sent, with two of them set to depart from the port of Pyeongtaek on the west coast Tuesday and to arrive in Melbourne in late August, according to the company. The

July 26, 2020