[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

S. Korea to hold arms component, equipment exhibition this month

South Korea will hold an arms component and equipment exhibition later this month, featuring advanced homegrown defense technologies, the state arms procurement agency said Monday. The three-day Korea Defense Component and Equipment Fair & Advanced Defense Industry Fair 2023 is scheduled to take place from June 28-30 in Daejeon, 139 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration. The exhibition is expected to bring together eight major weapons systems

June 12, 2023

NK launch window expires, but S. Korea not letting guard down

The office of President Yoon Suk Yeol said Sunday it is not letting its guard down even though the window for North Korea's satellite launch has expired, as the country can go ahead with a launch at any time. North Korea had set a period between the start of May 31 and the start of June 11 as the window for a satellite-carrying space rocket launch. The country fired the rocket on the first day of the window, but the launch ended in failure with the rocket crashing in the Yellow Sea. At the time,

June 11, 2023

S. Korea, Poland mull joint development of wheeled armored vehicles: official

South Korea and Poland appear to be considering a joint project to develop wheeled armored vehicles, the state arms procurement agency said Saturday. Officials from South Korea's Defense Acquisition Program Administration visited the state-owned Polska Grupa Zbrojeniowa late last month and discussed the joint development of the South Korean Army's K808 wheel-type armored vehicles, called "Baekho," according to the agency. The K808 vehicles were among a list of export items in

June 10, 2023

Navy to demonstrate amphibious landing operation with unmanned systems

The Navy will demonstrate an amphibious landing operation utilizing advanced unmanned systems at a naval base in Busan on Thursday, officials said, in a display of the armed service's preparations for future warfare. The demonstration will take place at Busan Naval Base in the port city, 320 kilometers southeast of Seoul, on the sidelines of the three-day International Maritime Defense Industry Exhibition 2023 that kicked off Wednesday, according to the Navy. The operation will mobilize six

June 8, 2023

S. Korea, Poland agree to expand defense cooperation, arms trade

The defense chiefs of South Korea and Poland on Wednesday agreed to further strengthen and broaden the scope of defense cooperation, in line with the progress made in defense industry cooperation, South Korea's Defense Ministry said. Both sides also discussed ways to conduct combined military exercises and promote military-to-military exchanges. South Korean Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and Poland's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of National Defense Mariusz Blaszczak met at South

June 7, 2023

4 Chinese, 4 Russian military planes enter S. Korea's air defense zone without notice: S. Korean military

Four Chinese and four Russian military planes entered South Korea's air defense identification zone without notice Tuesday, Seoul's military said, prompting the South Korean Air Force to send its fighter jets to the scene. The Joint Chiefs of Staff said that between 11:52 a.m. and 1:49 p.m., the Chinese and Russian aircraft entered the southern and eastern parts of the KADIZ, respectively, and exited it. They did not violate South Korea's air space, it added. "Our military

June 6, 2023

S. Korea launches upgraded veterans ministry

South Korea officially launched the upgraded veterans affairs ministry on Monday, in a show of its renewed commitment to commemorating and honoring those who sacrificed themselves for the nation. The upgrade of the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs from the previous sub-ministry level to full-fledged ministry status was among the 110 policy tasks pursued by the Yoon Suk Yeol administration launched in May last year. At the ministry in Sejong, 130 kilometers south of Seoul, Park Min-shik,

June 5, 2023

S. Korea's defense chief wraps up Singapore trip highlighting efforts to curb NK threats

SINGAPORE -- South Korea's Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup on Monday concluded a four-day visit to Singapore for an annual forum, where he focused on firming up international cooperation against North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats. On the margins of the three-day Shangri-La Dialogue that began Friday, Lee held back-to-back talks with his counterparts from the United States, Japan, China and others, amid renewed tensions over Pyongyang's failed yet defiant launch of a

June 5, 2023

S. Korean military continues operation to salvage N. Korean rocket debris

The South Korean military continued its work Sunday to search and salvage the wreckage of a North Korean rocket that crashed into the Yellow Sea earlier this week but wrapped up the day's operations due to unfavorable conditions. The rocket, that the North claimed was carrying a satellite, crashed into the waters some 200 kilometers west of the western South Korean island of Eocheong on Wednesday morning after an "abnormal flight," Seoul's military had said. The Navy has be

June 4, 2023

EU’s top diplomat corrects he ‘explains’ Ukraine’s needs for ammunition to S.Korea

SINGAPORE – The European Union's top diplomat, Josep Borrell, clarified Sunday that he "explained Ukraine's needs for ammunition" to the South Korean defense minister, correcting his statement on the bilateral talks. The correction came hours after South Korea's Defense Ministry issued a statement and said there was no discussion between Defense Minister Lee and Borrell regarding ammunition support for Ukraine. Both held a separate meeting on the sidelines of the S

June 4, 2023