S. Korea to issue new overarching defense strategy as early as next month

South Korea is seeking to publish a new overarching national defense strategy next month to chart a mid-and long-term direction of the country's security policy amid growing North Korean military threats, Seoul's defense ministry said Tuesday. The document, akin to the United States' National Defense Strategy, will replace the existing National Defense Policy. It puts forward a policy direction for a 15-year period and will be published every five years, according to the ministry.

Feb. 21, 2023

S.Korean defense chief denies court ruling on Vietnam War massacre

The South Korean defense chief said Friday that the military does not accept the recent court ruling acknowledging the accountability of South Korean troops for civilian carnage during the Vietnam War. Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup underscored that South Korean troops stationed in Vietnam did not commit any wartime civilian massacres, citing records and testimonies compiled by the military. “The Defense Ministry cannot agree with the court ruling,” Lee told the National Assembly&rsqu

Feb. 17, 2023

S. Korea, US to stage exercise simulating N. Korea’s nuclear use

South Korea and the United States will stage a tabletop exercise next week to discuss ways to develop a joint strategy and response to North Korea’s potential use of nuclear weapons amid the North’s continuing nuclear saber-rattling. The discussion-based TTX led by the alliance’s high-level Deterrence Strategy Committee will be conducted on Feb. 22 at the Pentagon in Washington, DC, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Friday. The DSC TTX has been co-organized by South Kor

Feb. 17, 2023

Parliamentary committee adopts resolution marking 70th anniversary of S. Korea-US alliance

The National Assembly's foreign affairs committee on Friday passed a resolution calling for the further strengthening of ties between South Korea and the United States to mark the 70th anniversary of the alliance. "The National Assembly reaffirms that the S. Korea-US alliance was the foundation for the Republic of Korea's democratization and economic growth and continues to function as a linchpin of peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula, the region and the world," the

Feb. 17, 2023

[From Korea to Kyiv] ‘No ceasefire without Russian withdrawal,’ says Ukrainian regional leader

Ukraine will never accept a cease-fire deal that requires Ukraine to cede more territory to Russia and allows the presence of Russian troops in illegally occupied territory, Vitaliy Kim, head of the regional military administration in the war-battered southern city of Mykolaiv in Ukraine, said in a joint interview with The Korea Herald and its sister publication Herald Business on Feb. 2. Kim was appointed the governor of the Mykolaiv region by Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy in November

Feb. 16, 2023

S. Korea, NATO carve out path to step up military cooperation

South Korea and NATO held their first military staff-to-staff talks in Seoul to pave the way to strengthen military exchanges and cooperation, South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday. South Korea's Director for Strategy and Plans Maj. Gen. Kim Su-kwang and Staff Maj. Gen. Francesco Diella, director of the Cooperative Security Division of the NATO International Military, participated as the chief delegates in the two days of meetings that began Monday. Both sides discussed a wide r

Feb. 14, 2023

S. Korea, US hold counter-drone drills amid N. Korean UAV threats

South Korea and the United States staged combined counter-drone drills at a US air base in a southwestern city last week, US military photos showed Sunday, as Seoul seeks to reinforce readiness following North Korea's drone incursions late last year. Posted on the Pentagon's Defense Visual Information Distribution Service on Friday, photos showed the drills taking place at Kunsan Air Base in Gunsan, 275 kilometers south of Seoul, on Tuesday. One photo depicted a US Air Force officer ai

Feb. 12, 2023

S. Korea to craft plan to develop new guided missile capable of striking N.Korean artillery

South Korea plans to adopt a basic plan as early as next month to develop a new advanced guided missile capable of striking North Korean long-range artillery pieces hidden in caves, the state arms procurement agency said Sunday. The envisioned missile will be an upgraded version of the Korean Tactical Surface-to-Surface Missile, which is dubbed the "long-range artillery killer," according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration. While the existing KTSSM system is operated on

Feb. 12, 2023

S. Korea, US to resume 'live, virtual, constructive' elements in springtime allied drills: USFK

South Korea and the United States plan to incorporate "live, virtual and constructive" training elements in this year's springtime combined military exercise for the first time in five years, the US Forces Korea said Friday, as part of efforts to bolster readiness against evolving North Korean threats. The LVC framework refers to "live" field maneuvers, "virtual" simulation drills and "constructive" war games -- three key elements that are intertwined

Feb. 10, 2023

[BREAKING] Korean team rescues 1 survivor in Turkey

A Korean rescue team on Thursday pulled a man in his 70s from the rubble in Antakya, southernmost Turkey, ravaged by the region's worst earthquake in modern history. The team also recovered four bodies from the same site during the rescue and search mission, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Seoul. The survivor was conscious and in relatively good health by the time he was rescued, the ministry added. He was found hours after the Korean team set up base camp at a high school i

Feb. 9, 2023

Air raid drills return in 6 years amid growing N.Korean threats

South Korea will hold nationwide civil air raid drills in May after a six-year break, improve public alert and warning systems and expand shelters in preparation for potential aircraft and missile attacks from North Korea. The measures were discussed Wednesday in a closed-door meeting of the Central United Defense Council convened by President Yoon Suk Yeol. It was the first time that a South Korean president presided over the meeting since 2016, in light of the significance of pangovernmental e

Feb. 8, 2023

S. Korea, US stage aerial drills with stealth fighters

South Korea and the US on Friday staged another military air exercise over the west coast of South Korea by mobilizing their stealth fighters, just two days after US strategic bombers flew to the Korean Peninsula for combined aerial drills. The air combat exercise involved F-22 and F-35B advanced stealth fighters and F-16CM fighting aircraft of the US Air Force and South Korean Air Force’s F-35A stealth fighter jets, according to South Korea’s Air Force. “The combined exercise

Feb. 3, 2023

S. Korea may test-fire new 'high-power' Hyunmoo ballistic missile in near future: source

South Korea is looking to test-launch a new "high-power" ballistic missile in the near future, an informed source said Wednesday, in a move to bolster deterrence against evolving North Korean military threats. The country has been working on the development of the missile, known as Hyunmoo-5, as a core asset of its deterrence capabilities. Earlier in the day, speculation emerged that the state-run Agency for Defense Development may test-fire it at its Anheung test site in Taean, 15

Feb. 1, 2023

[Graphic News] 7 out of 10 S. Koreans support independent development of nuclear weapons: poll

Seven out of 10 South Koreans see the need for Seoul to independently pursue its own nuclear weapons development program, a survey showed, amid concerns over escalating military threats from Pyongyang and a lack of trust in denuclearization negotiations with North Korea. According to a Gallup Korea poll of 1,000 adults, commissioned by the Chey Institute for Advanced Studies, 76.6 percent replied that the South needs to develop nuclear weapons independently to counter Pyongyang’s intensify

Feb. 1, 2023

Yoon asks Pentagon chief for extended deterrence mechanism to dispel S. Koreans' concern over NK

President Yoon Suk Yeol on Tuesday asked the US defense chief to arrange bilateral consultations to establish “effective” extended deterrence mechanisms which could dispel South Koreans’ concerns over North Korean nuclear threats. In return, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin pledged to make every effort for combined defense to clear up South Korea’s doubts over the credibility of the US security commitment and nuclear assurances, senior presidential secreta

Jan. 31, 2023

S. Korea, US agree to further step up military exercises

South Korea and the US on Tuesday agreed to further expand and reinforce combined exercises and training to counter escalating nuclear and missile threats from North Korea and to achieve “peace through strength” on the Korean Peninsula.  The US defense chief also pledged to step up the deployment of US strategic assets to South Korea to strengthen US extended deterrence against North Korea, saying that fifth-generation fighter jets such as F-22s and F-35s and nuclear-powered ai

Jan. 31, 2023

Adversary that challenges S. Korea challenging Seoul-Washington alliance as whole: US defense chief

US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin warned Tuesday that if an adversary challenges South Korea or the United States, it would be challenging the two countries' "alliance as a whole," reaffirming America's "ironclad" security commitment to the Asian ally. Austin issued the warning in an exclusive contribution piece to Yonhap News Agency, as he plans to hold talks with South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup in Seoul later in the day to discuss deterrence against evolving Nort

Jan. 31, 2023

NATO, Pentagon chiefs gather in Seoul for talks on N.Korea, security

The US’ top defense leader and the chief of NATO are in Seoul to ways to step up cooperation with South Korea in deterring and countering escalating missile and nuclear threats from North Korea. The head of NATO also openly urged Seoul to enhance its military support for Kyiv as the war in Ukraine grinds on. South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and NATO Secretary-General Jens Stoltenberg on Monday discussed a wide range of pending issues, including the North Korean nuclear issue, South Kor

Jan. 30, 2023

Two Chinese warplanes entered KADIZ earlier this week: S. Korean military

Two Chinese fighter jets flew through the overlapping parts of the air defense identification zones of South Korea and China earlier this week, prompting the military here to put its warplanes on standby, officials here said Friday. Their flight on Thursday came just before the Pentagon announced Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin will visit Seoul for talks with his South Korean counterpart, Lee Jong-sup, next week in what could be an occasion to highlight their commitment to cementing the bilateral

Jan. 28, 2023

UNC says S. Korean military’s tit-for-tat action not legitimate

South and North Korea breached the armistice agreement by flying drones across the inter-Korean border last December, said the United Nations Command on Thursday. South Korea disputed the UNC’s conclusion, saying that sending drones to North Korea after Pyongyang’s infiltration was carried out in “self-defense,” which is not restricted by the armistice agreement. The special investigation team was able to determine that the North Korean military “committ

Jan. 26, 2023