South Korea's military plans to ease its social distancing restrictions, including curbs on off-base trips, in phases and administer booster shots for all service members by early next year, the defense ministry said Friday. Defense Minister Suh Wook finalized the plan at a video-linked meeting with top military commanders, as the government plans to enforce eased anti-COVID-19 rules starting ne...

South Korea's veterans ministry said Friday it has named late Gen. Oliver Prince Smith of the US Marine Corps as the Korean War hero of the month for his role in a major evacuation mission during the 1950-53 conflict. Under his leadership, the 1st Marine Division of the US fought their way against Chinese forces at the Battle of Chosin Reservoir, which is considered one of the fiercest battles o...

South Korea's military reported 12 additional COVID-19 cases Friday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,035, the defense ministry said. Two Army conscripts stationed in Paju, north of Seoul, tested positive after returning from their vacations, according to the ministry. A Marine based on the front-line island of Daecheongdo was also infected. Other remaining cases included tw...

South Korea will launch a project next month to develop a homegrown naval interception system designed to protect warships from hostile aircraft and missiles, the state arms procurement agency said Friday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said the project aims to develop the Close In Weapon System-II (CIWS-II) -- a ship-based gun capable of countering incoming attacks in the...

Defense Minister Suh Wook and US Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro on Thursday discussed deepening naval ties and expanding alliance, during a meeting held at the Defense Ministry headquarters in Yongsan, Seoul. Suh thanked Del Toro for US support in bringing in nearly 400 Afghans in August who worked on South Korean projects in Afghanistan before the Taliban seized power. Seoul amended the law to ...

South Korea's Defense Minister Suh Wook held talks with the visiting US secretary of the Navy in Seoul on Thursday to discuss security on the Korean Peninsula, the bilateral alliance and other issues, his ministry said. The talks between Suh and Secretary Carlos Del Toro came as Seoul and Washington seek to ensure their defense readiness, following a recent series of North Korean missile launche...

South Korea has found more than two dozen bone fragments presumed to be from troops killed in the 1950-53 Korean War during recent excavation work in a former battle site, the defense ministry said Thursday. The military has discovered 26 bone pieces and 5,132 articles, including combat gear, in the White Horse Ridge, the site inside the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating the two Koreas. Many o...

South Korea's military reported four additional COVID-19 cases Thursday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,023, the defense ministry said. A Navy officer stationed in Jinhae, 410 kilometers south of Seoul, tested positive after a family member was infected, according to the ministry. Three Army draftees were also infected. Of the cumulative cases in the military, 1,966, or 97...

South Korea's military reported two additional COVID-19 cases Wednesday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,019, the defense ministry said. An officer of the Joint Chiefs of Staff based in Seoul tested positive after a family member was infected. An Army officer stationed in Yangju, north of Seoul, also tested positive after a virus case was reported at the base. Of the cumul...

President Moon Jae-in's security adviser said Tuesday it is difficult to predict whether another summit between Moon and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un can take place, citing "many uncertainties." Suh Hoon, director of the National Security Office at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae, made the remarks during a parliamentary audit, amid speculation Moon is pushing for another inter-Korean su...

Workers at South Korea’s chief weapons developer were offered no incentive pay, despite their efforts that President Moon Jae-in hailed as marking a new milestone in the country’s decadeslong drive to mount a self-reliant defense. The Agency for Defense Development -- which recently tested a submarine-launched ballistic missile, making South Korea the first non-nuclear state to do so -- has yet ...

South Korea's military said Tuesday it will open its first hydrogen charging station this week, helping accelerate the country's drive to promote the use of renewable energy sources. The government has been proactive in efforts to boost the hydrogen economy under the goal of going carbon neutral by 2050. The charging station will open in Daejeon, 164 kilometers south of Seoul, on Wednesday, als...

South Korea's military reported six additional COVID-19 cases Tuesday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 2,017, the defense ministry said. A Navy officer and a draftee stationed in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, tested positive after a virus case was reported at their base, according to the ministry. An officer of a unit under the direct wing of the defense ministry ...

The military said Monday that it would ease regulations on conscripts’ hair length and introduce the same standards for both officers and troops, amid calls for a change in discriminatory practices. “We were asked to review our rules on haircuts, and to that end, we instructed each branch of the armed forces to draft revisions. We can’t say when the change will take effect, though,” Defense Mini...

Nine additional people affiliated with the US Forces Korea (USFK) have tested positive for COVID-19, the US military's infection tally showed Monday. Among the new cases counted from Oct. 15 to 21 were four American troops working at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul. The remaining individuals were four family members and a civilian contract worker, according to the USF...