S. Korean military ship, personnel leave to join multinational exercise in Australia

A South Korean warship carrying some 500 personnel departed Wednesday for Australia to participate in a biennial multinational maritime exercise set to begin next month, the Navy said. The 14,500-ton ROKS Marado amphibious landing ship left a military port in Busan, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, to join the Talisman Sabre exercise slated to take place in a northeastern region of Australia from July 22-Aug. 4. Jointly hosted by the United States and Australia, this year's edition of the

June 28, 2023

US is working with S. Korea, Japan to deter N. Korean aggression: Pentagon

The United States is working with allies and partners, namely South Korea and Japan, to deter potential aggression from North Korea, a Pentagon spokesperson said Tuesday, after Pyongyang warned that the Korean Peninsula is on the "brink of a nuclear war." Department of Defense spokesperson Brig. Gen. Pat Ryder noted the North may conduct a nuclear test to further its escalation. "So rhetoric aside, again, our focus is on working with our allies and our partners in the region to en

June 28, 2023

Recruits at military boot camps to be allowed to use mobile phones from next month

South Korea's military manpower agency said Tuesday that new recruits at boot camps will be able to use mobile phones for one hour on weekends and holidays starting from July 3. The change is part of moves to allow enlisted troops to use mobile phones. In May, the defense ministry said it plans to expand a trial program allowing enlisted troops to use mobile phones on their bases later this year. From July through December, the program will be applied to some 60,000 enlistees, around 20 per

June 27, 2023

S. Korea enacts drone operation law against NK infiltration

South Korea enacted a new law on Tuesday to establish a drone operations command aimed at conducting both defensive and offensive missions, including striking North Korean drones infiltrating South Korean airspace. The law was proclaimed six months after President Yoon Suk Yeol's order to establish a drone operations command. The order was in response to an incident in which five North Korean drones intruded South Korean airspace, and flew over Seoul and the western inter-Korean border area

June 27, 2023

S. Korea approves plan to upgrade K9 howitzers

South Korea's defense authorities on Monday endorsed a plan to upgrade the homegrown K9 self-propelled howitzer to bolster its strike capabilities, the state arms procurement agency said. The Defense Project Promotion Committee gave the nod to the 2.36 trillion-won ($1.81 billion) basic plan for the second upgrade project of the K9 scheduled to run through 2027, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration. The "Block-I" upgrade project seeks to automate the ammunit

June 26, 2023

Women to serve on Korean submarines from 2024

South Korea's Navy will deploy women officers aboard 3,000-ton submarines for the first time starting next year, breaking the longstanding glass ceiling within the country's military after 31 years since the Navy commissioned its first-ever Jang Bogo submarine in 1993. Seven non-commissioned female officers were selected earlier this month out of a pool of 22 applicants to serve on submarines, the Navy announced Monday. The Navy had initially planned to select four non-commissioned fem

June 26, 2023

S. Korea calls for peace through strength on 73rd Korean War anniversary

South Korea's prime minister on Sunday called for the establishment of genuine peace by further strengthening the military, saying that North Korea's persistent missile and nuclear threats are driven by an outdated mindset and perceptions stemming from the Korean War. Prime Minister Han Duck-soo delivered a speech during a ceremony commemorating the 73rd anniversary of the start of the Korean War on June 25. The Korean War began 73 years ago in 1950 when North Korea launched a sudden a

June 25, 2023

S. Korea identifies remains of another Korean War soldier

South Korea's military has identified the remains of another soldier killed during the 1950-53 Korean War, about 13 years after their discovery near the inter-Korean border, the defense ministry said Friday. The ministry's Agency for KIA Recovery and Identification confirmed the remains belonged to Pfc. Kim Hyeon-taek, after conducting a DNA analysis using a sample from his daughter. KIA stands for "killed in action." The agency first discovered part of his remains in Cheorwo

June 23, 2023

[Herald Interview] Living witness recounts forging of US, South Korea's 'blood alliance'

At the age of 16, Lee In-bum made his way to Gangneung, Gangwon Province, in July 1951 amid the chaos of the Korean War, which had broken out the year before and torn the nation into pieces. Although he was too young to enlist officially in the South Korean military, he was set on finding a way to help defend his homeland against the forces of North Korea and China. Through his service, the war veteran said he bore witness to the making of the "blood alliance" between South Korea and t

June 22, 2023

S. Korea, NATO ink arrangement to begin recognition process for military airworthiness certification

South Korea and the North Atlantic Treaty Organization have signed an arrangement to launch the mutual recognition process for military airworthiness certification, Seoul's defense procurement agency said Thursday. Representatives from Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration and the NATO Aviation Committee inked it at NATO headquarters in Brussels on Wednesday, in a move to strengthen bilateral cooperation on air safety. Airworthiness is a key measure of a plane's suita

June 22, 2023

[From the Scene] Polish pilots on transition from flying Soviet jets to S. Korea's FA-50

YECHEON, North Gyeongsang Province — A team of Polish pilots is bidding farewell to its Soviet-era MiG-29 fighter jets. They are instead transitioning to South Korea's FA-50 light combat aircraft, with training support and guidance from the South Korean Air Force. Two groups, each comprising four Polish pilots, have undergone monthslong training in Korea. The primary aim of this training is to provide them with the essential skills and knowledge required to operate the FA-50 light com

June 21, 2023

S. Korea completes environmental assessment of US THAAD missile defense base

South Korea completed an environmental impact assessment of a US THAAD missile defense unit in a southern county Wednesday, the defense and environment ministries said, clearing the way for its full-fledged deployment. The Yoon Suk Yeol administration has been pushing for the "normalization" of the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery, which was installed in Seongju, 214 kilometers southeast of Seoul, in 2017, but has held the status of a "temporary" installation pendi

June 21, 2023

S. Korea crafts aggressive posture against potential N. Korean drone infiltrations: source

The South Korean military has adopted an aggressive counter-drone operational principle, under which a single North Korean drone infiltration would prompt it to send 10 or more unmanned aerial vehicles into Pyongyang, a source said Tuesday. The measure is part of Seoul's efforts to beef up air defenses after five North Korean drones intruded across the inter-Korean border in December last year, with one of them having penetrated a no-fly zone close to Seoul's presidential office. The C

June 20, 2023

PM urges full preparations for launching drone operations command

Prime Minister Han Duck-soo on Tuesday called on the military to make full preparations for a successful launch of its drone operations command later this year to respond "effectively and overwhelmingly" to North Korean drone provocations. Han made the remarks while presiding over a weekly Cabinet meeting during which a bill on the establishment of the drone operations command was approved. He asked the defense ministry and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to "make every effort to ensure

June 20, 2023

US nuclear-powered submarine enters S. Korean port

The US Navy's nuclear-powered submarine entered the southern port city of Busan on Friday, demonstrating the US commitment to strengthening extended deterrence as outlined in the April 26 Washington Declaration, South Korea's Defense Ministry announced. The USS Michigan, an Ohio-class nuclear-powered guided missile submarine (SSGN), was deployed by the US Navy to the Korean Peninsula as North Korea has continued its missile launches. The arrival of the US SSGN came a day after North Korea fired

June 16, 2023

S. Korea salvages NK 'satellite' launch debris in West Sea

PYEONGTAEK, Gyeonggi Province -- The South Korean military salvaged the wreckage of North Korea's space launch vehicle on Thursday evening for joint investigation and analysis with the United States, aiming to gather the latest information on Pyongyang's missile technologies. South Korea's Navy retrieved the launch debris, which has been presumed to be the second stage of North Korea's launch vehicle, at around 8:50 p.m. local time, the Joint Chiefs of Staff announced Friday

June 16, 2023

Veterans minister urges Japan to help locate independence fighter's remains

South Korean veterans minister on Thursday asked the Tokyo government for cooperation in locating the remains of Ahn Jung-geun, a Korean Independence fighter who assassinated a prominent statesman of the Japan Empire in protest of its colonial rule of the Korean Peninsula. Although 113 years having passed since Ahn's death in March 1910, South Korea has yet to excavate his remains and time is running out, said Park Min-shik, the veterans minister. Ahn assassinated Hirobumi Ito, the first re

June 15, 2023

Military helicopter makes emergency landing in Yangyang; 2 slightly injured

A military helicopter made an emergency landing in the east coast county of Yangyang on Wednesday, leaving the pilot and a passenger with minor injuries, authorities said. The chopper made the landing in front of a village church in Yangyang, 150 kilometers northeast of Seoul, at 10:21 a.m. The two people on board sustained minor injuries and were transferred to a military hospital. Military authorities are investigating the cause of the accident. (Yonhap)

June 14, 2023

Japan, US, South Korea to hold security advisers meeting in Tokyo - Jiji

Japan will host a meeting of security advisers with the United States and South Korea in Tokyo on June 15, and with the United States and the Philippines on June 16, Jiji news agency reported on Tuesday. (Reuters)

June 13, 2023

[From the Scene] Empowering women as ‘force multiplier’

CAMP HUMPHREYS, Gyeonggi Province — South Korean and US forces have come together to lay the ground for enhancing women's participation and expanding their role in maintaining peace and security on the Korean Peninsula and beyond. The first-ever, three-day Women, Peace, and Security Symposium, jointly organized by the United States Forces Korea, United Nations Command, and Combined Forces Command, commenced on Tuesday at Camp Humphreys, the US' largest overseas military base, in

June 13, 2023