The defense ministry plans to build a new complex to house the Army's cyber command, military sources said Tuesday, a move expected to draw controversy as the command is at the center of an election-meddling scandal.

According to the sources, the cyber command plans to push for constructing a new independent complex of some 43,504 square meters in Yongsan, central Seoul, by around 2016 with a budget of 71.7 billion won (US$66.07 million).

"The new complex is needed to help boost our capacity to better conduct cyber warfare and carry out relevant research and development," an official of the cyber command said, requesting anonymity. "We also plan to set up simulating centers to train cyber warriors, which will take up a lot of space. 

"The candidate venue for the new complex will be where the defense procurement agency is located," he said. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration plans to be moved to the government complex in Gwacheon, south of Seoul, in accordance with the government's relocation plan for administrative offices. 

Currently, the cyber command is housed in a three-story building inside the defense ministry site in Seoul.

The cyber command under the Ministry of National Defense was created in 2010 in order to counter security threats in cyberspace, including hacking attempts, mostly by North Korea.

In the wake of growing threats, the command has recently decided to drop its long-held defensive tactics in cyber warfare and instead initiate proactive operations to better guard against enemies' online infiltrations. For the first nine months of this year, the country has seen an increasing number of cyber attacks: 1,202 hacking attempts, up 595 cases from a year earlier.

But the move for a new complex is feared to spark controversy as the organization has lost public confidence after the election-meddling scandal. 

Two of its former commanders were accused of meddling in politics after the command turned out to have posted tens of thousands of online comments in favor of or against specific political parties and candidates before and after the 2012 presidential election.

"The construction plan should not be implemented until the government comes up with measures to make sure that the cyber command will not be involved in any political campaigns," said Rep.

Lee Chun-seok of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy in a statement. (Yonhap)