The Korea Herald

Seoul to purchase 36 Apache helicopters

Apr 17, 2013

South Korea on Wednesday selected Boeing’s AH-64E Apache Guardian for a 1.8 trillion won ($1.6 billion) procurement project amid escalating military threats posed by North Korea, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration said. The new fleet of advanced attack helicopters would play a crucial role in countering possible North Korean amphibious infiltrations into western border islands and ot...
Japan ready to ink military pact with S. Korea 'at any time'

Apr 17, 2013

The Japanese ambassador to Seoul said Wednesday that Tokyo is prepared to sign a military intelligence pact with South Korea "at any time," urging Seoul to boost military partnership in the face of North Korea's bellicose threats. South Korea and Japan postponed the signing of the military intelligence-sharing agreement last July -- which would have been the first military pact between the two ...
Korea eyes extra 217 billion won for defense spending

Apr 16, 2013

The Defense Ministry said Tuesday it will submit a 217.4 billion won ($194.3 million) supplementary budget to the parliament for approval to increase spending on weapons on the frontlines and shelters on border islands to better counter North Korean threats amid high tensions. The Cabinet approved an extra budget worth 17.3 trillion won for this year in a bid to revitalize the economy faced with...
No injuries reported in U.S. military chopper crash

Apr 16, 2013

A U.S. military helicopter crashed while landing at a front-line Army unit Tuesday, but all of three crew members and 13 U.S. soldiers on board escaped unscathed, police and military officials said. Sikorsky's CH-53 transport helicopter crashed onto a military shooting range in Cherwon, 88 kilometers north of Seoul, while landing after completing a three-hour training exercise along with five ot...
S. Korea divides nuclear plant controls from Internet

Apr 14, 2013

Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power Co., the sole operator of South Korea's nuclear power plants, said Sunday that it has separated its internal computer network from the Internet in an effort to guard against possible cyber attacks. The state-run company said it has also completely divided its nuclear plant control systems from its internal computer networks and restricted both systems' access to the I...
Border mountain fire eases

Apr 14, 2013

A wind-fed mountain fire that broke out in North Korea and spread into the South Korean sector of the inter-Korean border Saturday was largely brought under control, military authorities said. The blaze, first spotted in the northern side of the 4-kilometer-wide Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) at around 4:40 a.m., quickly spread past the eastern sector of the 248-kilometer border and reached within 10...
Allied forces on high alert amid N.K. missile threats

Apr 10, 2013

Seoul officials say Pyongyang is ready for multiple missile launches; Washington calls threat ‘unhelpful’
Korea to develop mid-altitude drones

Apr 9, 2013

South Korea will resume a once-aborted program to develop mid-altitude unmanned aerial vehicles (MUAV) to bolster its monitoring capabilities of North Korea’s missile and nuclear programs, a military source said Tuesday. The state-funded Agency for Defense Development launched the indigenous drone development project in 2006 and made a prototype in May 2010. But the project was put on ice in ear...
Pentagon delays missile test out of N.K. concern

Apr 7, 2013

Seoul,Washington put off annual top military meeting amid tension
S. Korea's defense spending rises amid N. Korea's nuclear threat

Apr 7, 2013

SEOUL -- South Korea's defense spending rose for the third consecutive year last year, data showed Sunday, amid escalating tensions with North Korea over its persistent nuclear and missile threats. South Korea spent 2.6 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP) on defense last year, the highest level in three years, according to figures by the Ministry of National Defense. South Korea's defen...
U.S. delays missile test as tensions rise: source

Apr 7, 2013

The U.S. Defense Department has delayed an intercontinental ballistic missile test that had been planned for next week at an Air Force base in California amid mounting tensions with North Korea, a senior defense official told The Associated Press. The official said Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel decided to put off the long-planned Minuteman 3 test until sometime next month because of concerns the...
Pentagon approves fighter jet sale to Seoul

Apr 4, 2013

The U.S. Defense Department has notified Congress of the possible sale of Lockheed Martin’s F-35 stealth warplane or Boeing’s F-15 Silent Eagle to South Korea, which is to pick the winner of its fighter acquisition contest later this year. On Wednesday, the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, which handles Washington’s foreign military sales, announced the compulsory congressional notification,...
Allied cohesion at core of N.K. deterrence

Apr 2, 2013

YANGJU, Gyeonggi Province ― North Korea’s increasing threats have sent South Korean and U.S. military planners racing to beef up weapons systems and upgrade strategies. To frontline commanders, mutual trust and chemistry between the allied troops are as crucial as all the plans and equipment in maintaining a robust deterrence. The alliance between the two militaries has deepened over the last s...
Pressure builds on China as U.S. ups might in Korea

Apr 2, 2013

Experts say Beijing would not easily change policy on its impoverished ally
Defense Ministry to establish cyber policy department

Apr 2, 2013

South Korea’s Defense Ministry will establish a new department to oversee cyber deterrence policies and prepare information security measures to better deal with the emerging form of threats, a senior military official said Tuesday. The South Korean military launched the Cyber Command in early 2010 to handle cyber security issues along with different military and intelligence organizations, but ...