Seoul has the world‘s fourth-largest defense R&D expenditure

South Korea's military on Monday reported four additional COVID-19 cases, all of which are breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,444. Of the new cases, three are from the Army and one from a unit under the direct control of the defense ministry. Currently, 191 military personnel are under treatment. Of the total military caseload, 1,631 are breakthrough ca...

US Forces Korea (USFK) said Saturday it has decided to toughen social distancing rules for its service members amid the growing number of infections among its troops. The USFK had confirmed a weekly record high of 682 additional COVID-19 cases among its personnel from Dec. 28 to Tuesday. It did not offer more details, including the number of breakthrough cases or locations of the infected member...

South Korea's military on Friday reported 27 additional COVID-19 cases, including 25 breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,403. Of the new cases, 19 are from the Army, four from the Air Force, two from the Navy and two from the Marine Corps. Currently, 217 military personnel are under treatment. Of the total military caseload, 1,591 are breakthrough cases....

The remains of a South Korean troop killed in the 1950-53 Korean War have been identified following their recovery from a former battle site last year, the defense ministry said Friday. In October, the ministry's excavation team found the remains of Ssg. Kim Il-soo from the site, White Horse Ridge, inside the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas. It later identified him through a DNA ana...

South Korea, the United States and Japan have postponed their trilateral defense ministerial talks that they had considered holding this month, Seoul's defense ministry said Thursday. Japanese media outlets reported earlier that the three countries have decided to delay the talks set to take place next Thursday in Hawaii due to the spread of the omicron variant. "There were not any discussions ...

South Korea’s military said Wednesday that it failed to stop a North Korean defector even though he was caught on surveillance cameras five times. The Joint Chiefs of Staff on Wednesday disclosed the results of its on-site investigation into how the 30-something North Korean man returned to the North Saturday night. The military currently believes that the defector is the same person who defect...

South Korea's military on Wednesday reported 28 additional COVID-19 cases, including 25 breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,360. Of the new cases, 14 are from the Army, nine from units under the direct control of the defense ministry, two from the Air Force, two from the Marine Corps and one from the Navy. Currently, 233 military personnel are under trea...

An F-35A fighter operated by South Korea's Air Force made an emergency landing during a training session Tuesday due to avionic system issues, with its pilot having emerged unscathed, officials said. The radar-evading jet made the belly landing on a runway at an air base in Seosan, 151 kilometers south of Seoul, at 12:51 p.m. after the issues caused the landing gear to momentarily malfunction, t...

The US Department of Defense has said South Korea and the United States will proceed with their combined springtime exercise as previously agreed upon, according to Radio Free Asia. The statement by a Pentagon spokesperson came amid concerns that the exercise, if held, could dampen Seoul's efforts to resume dialogue with Pyongyang. The North has berated the allies' drills as a war rehearsal agai...

JCS takes lead in planning, executing joint space operations

South Korea's top military officer has called for troops to stick to "basics and principles" in a New Year's message, his aide said Monday, a directive eclipsed by a botched effort to stop an unidentified person from crossing the inter-Korean border over the weekend. For delivery on the first week of the new year, Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Won In-choul had the message ready on Fr...

South Korea's military on Monday reported eight additional COVID-19 cases, including seven breakthrough infections, raising the total caseload among its personnel to 3,311. Of the new cases, five are from the Army, one from the Navy, one from the Air Force and one from a unit under the direct control of the defense ministry. Currently, 240 military personnel are under treatment. Of the total mi...

South Korea's Defense Minister Suh Wook reiterated calls Friday for military personnel to maintain political neutrality as rival parties are revving up preparations for the March 9 presidential election. Suh made the calls in his New Year's message that highlighted the Moon Jae-in administration's resolve to strengthen "across-the-board" national defense while trying to reduce cross-border tensi...

An Army service member suffered an injury in a land mine explosion near the inter-Korean border Thursday, an official said. The detonator of the Claymore directional anti-personnel mine exploded at the front-line Army base in Yanggu, 175 kilometers northeast of Seoul, when the troops were inspecting their equipment. The soldier is currently receiving medical treatment, although the official sai...