The chief of the US Indo-Pacific Command has said the introduction of nuclear-powered submarines in South Korea could be considered in the future depending on its operational analysis, the presidential office said Sunday. "From the standpoint of submarine warfare, I think it's important as allies and partners to find the most efficient and effective ways to combine our capabilities in ways that most effectively defend our alliances and partnerships," Commander Adm. Samuel Paparo s

Frequency of US nuclear forces deployments will be increased to level comparable to permanent presence.

South Korea and Japan held joint talks between their senior defense officials in Tokyo on Wednesday, the defense ministry said, amid efforts to improve bilateral ties and deter threats from North Korea. It marked the first time the director general-level meeting was held since August 2015. The meeting had usually been held on an annual basis since it was launched in 1994. Lee Seung-beom, director general for international policy at the defense ministry, and his Japanese counterpart, Atsushi Ando

South Korea and the United States will hold their fifth round of negotiations this week on sharing the costs for stationing the 28,500-strong US Forces Korea (USFK), the foreign ministry said Monday. The latest round of talks on the Special Measures Agreement will take place in Seoul from Wednesday to Friday, according to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. The fourth round of talks was held in late June. The allies launched the negotiations in April, earlier than expected, amid speculation that Se

President Yoon Suk Yeol will attend the North Atlantic Treaty Organization summit in Washington next week and visit the US Indo-Pacific Command in Hawaii, the presidential office announced Friday. Principal deputy national security adviser Kim Tae-hyo informed reporters that President Yoon would arrive in Washington on Wednesday to meet leaders of NATO member countries and the NATO leadership. The discussions will focus on the war in Ukraine and the cooperation between the transatlantic secu

South Korea resumed live-fire exercises at artillery ranges near the border with North Korea on Tuesday for the first time in six years, following the suspension of an inter-Korean tension-reduction pact that restricted such drills. Troops fired some 140 rounds using the K9 and K105A1 self-propelled howitzers during the drills at front-line ranges in the provinces of Gyeonggi and Gangwon, located within 5 kilometers of the Military Demarcation Line within the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) separating

South Korea on Saturday commemorated the 22nd anniversary of its victorious naval skirmish against North Korea, paying tribute to Navy sailors killed in action and vowing to honor their sacrifices with a firmer defense posture. The ceremony marking the anniversary of the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong took place at the Navy's 2nd Fleet Command in Pyeongtaek, 60 kilometers south of Seoul. Defense Minister Shin Won-sik, Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Yang Yong-mo and Vice Veterans Minister Lee Hee-wa

South Korea, the United States and Japan are scheduled to conclude their first trilateral multidomian military exercise Saturday afternoon, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said, as the three countries looked to strengthen their deterrence against North Korean threats. Titled "Freedom Edge," the three-day exercise began Thursday in international waters south of South Korea's southern resort island of Jeju. Defense chiefs of the three nations had agreed to launch these drills earlier in June,

Nuclear envoys of South Korea, the United States and Japan discussed coordination efforts Wednesday after North Korea fired a ballistic missile that appears to have failed, Seoul's foreign ministry said. Lee Jun-il, director general for Korean Peninsula policy, shared the assessment on the latest missile launch, with his US and Japanese counterparts, Jung Pak and Yukiya Hamamoto, respectively, the ministry said. "The three sides condemned the North's ballistic missile launch as a

After two straight days of dumping trash on Seoul with balloons, Pyongyang tests new missile -- and fails

South Korea’s defense chief Shin Won-sik said Monday he will make efforts to secure orders for tanks, armored vehicles and air defense systems from Romania, which has decided to purchase the K-9 self-propelled howitzers. The minister of national defense, who returned from a trip to Romania and Poland, told reporters at the defense ministry building in Yongsan, central Seoul, that he would try to get South Korean companies to enter the Romanian defense market. He said Romania was in the pro

South Korea and the United States will hold their fourth round of negotiations on sharing the cost for the upkeep of the 28,500-strong American troops here, a foreign ministry official said Monday. The talks on the Special Measures Agreement will take place in Seoul from Tuesday through Thursday, led by Lee Tae-woo, South Korea's chief negotiator for the talks, and Linda Specht, the US lead negotiator for security agreements at the State Department, the official said. The current six-year S

The state arms procurement agency said Monday it has completed the operational deployment of the locally built Surion utility helicopter to the Army, more than a decade after the first unit's delivery. South Korea began delivering the KUH-1 Surion helicopter to the Army in late 2012, after a seven-year development period starting in 2006. It was designed to replace the Army's aging fleet of US-made UH-1H and 500MD helicopters. The Army now operates more than 200 Surions, which carry ou

Elite Army unit hones anti-terrorism skills through simulated attacks

A nuclear-powered US aircraft carrier arrived Saturday in South Korea for a three-way exercise involving Japan as they step up military training to cope with North Korean threats, which have escalated following a security pact with Russia. The arrival of the USS Theodore Roosevelt strike group in Busan came a day after South Korea summoned the Russian ambassador to protest a major deal between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong Un this week. The agreement pledges m