South Korea has notified the United States of its plan to pay wages in advance for its citizens who work for the US Forces Korea but have been furloughed amid a deadlock in their defense cost-sharing negotiations, a government source said Sunday. Around 4,000 employees were furloughed indefinitely starting on April 1, as Seoul and Washington have failed to bridge differences over a new Special Measures Agreement (SMA) that stipulates how much Seoul would pay for the upkeep of the 28,500-strong

Around 20 former researchers at the state defense agency are being probed over a suspected leak of classified information regarding the development of advanced weapons, officials said Sunday. The former workers at the Agency for Defense Development (ADD) allegedly stole military secrets when they left the institution, the officials said, adding that most of them moved to colleges or major private defense firms. The materials consisted of classified information regarding the military's technol

United States Forces Korea said Friday it had decided to extend its public health emergency declaration to curb coronavirus infections at the US Army Garrison here. Amid growing concerns over the virus spread, the emergency was initially declared March 25 but expired Thursday. Effective until May 23, the renewed declaration did not mean an increased risk level but was a reminder that the commander would exercise authority to enforce the military staff’s compliance with required precaution

The southeastern city of Changwon and the surrounding South Gyeongsang Province have been named the host for the government's first regional defense industry innovation center aimed at promoting development of home-grown parts and revitalizing regional economies, the arms procurement agency said Thursday. The government plans to spend 45 billion won ($36.39 million) over the next five years to create the "Defense Industry Innovation Cluster" in the Changwon-Gyeongnam region to help d

Three American soldiers based in South Korea's southeastern city of Daegu have been demoted and ordered to pay forfeiture for exiting their post in violation of coronavirus quarantine rules and coming back through a hole in the fence, the 8th Army said Wednesday. A private first class of the 94th Military Police Battalion is accused of exiting Camp Walker in Daegu, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, for an unauthorized purpose and entering the post through a hole he created in the install

South Korea will have to pay more than it recently offered in a defense cost-sharing pact with the US, experts said Wednesday, as US President Donald Trump continues to insist on a drastic hike in contributions from Seoul. Trump said Monday that he had rejected an offer from Korea, which reportedly promised 13 percent more than the $900 million it paid last year. Washington had initially asked for $5 billion. “Trump is telling negotiating teams -- both Washington and Seoul -- that he wa

The military will ease restrictions on enlisted service members' off-installation travel, the defense ministry said Wednesday, amid signs of a slowdown in the spread of the new coronavirus in the country. The military has restricted all enlisted service personnel from vacationing, staying outside their bases and meeting visitors since mid-February after the Navy reported the first COVID-19 infection in barracks. Under the eased policy, enlisted service members at designated areas will be allo

South Korea and the United States will hold a biannual defense meeting via video links this week to discuss pending alliance issues, such as efforts to denuclearize North Korea and cope with the coronavirus pandemic, the defense ministry said Tuesday. During the 17th Korea-US Integrated Defense Dialogue on Wednesday, the two sides will share evaluations on the security situation on the Korean Peninsula, according to the ministry. The meeting will take place in a videoconference due to the coro

A military hospital in the central city of Daejeon reopened Tuesday after medical workers who were suspected of the coronavirus infection all tested negative for the disease, the defense ministry said. The hospital, under the wing of the Armed Forces Medical Command, had been shut down after some medical workers were suspected of COVID-19 infection Sunday. After showing mixed results, 10 workers who were examined all tested negative for the virus in the third round of examination, according t

US Forces Korea (USFK) called Tuesday for service members to guard against complacency and to follow aggressive preventive measures against the coronavirus so as to stop its spread and maintain a full readiness posture. "All USFK-affiliated individuals must remain disciplined and vigilant in their efforts to fighting complacency," USFK said in a release. So far, USFK has reported a total of 25 infections, with the latest case confirmed last week, and two of the patients are active-d

Two US spy planes have flown over South Korea, an aviation tracker said Tuesday, on an apparent mission to monitor North Korea. The US Air Force's E-8C and Navy's P-3C were spotted in skies above South Korea, Aircraft Spots tweeted without specifying the exact time of their operation. The United States has deployed a series of reconnaissance aircraft here in recent months following the North's stepped-up military moves amid little progress in denuclearization negotiations with Washington. Th

WASHINGTON -- US President Donald Trump said Monday he rejected South Korea's offer on defense cost-sharing because the country is wealthy and should pay "for a big percentage of what we're doing" there. "They've offered us a certain amount of money and I've rejected it," Trump said at a White House coronavirus press briefing, referring to the stalled negotiations on how to share the cost for the upkeep of about 28,500 American troops stationed in South Korea. "

Ten medical staff members at a military hospital in the central city of Daejeon have all tested negative for the coronavirus, officials said Monday. The hospital has been temporarily shut down.    This is not the final results, however, as each of three rounds of testing on their samples showed mixed results and officials suspect that the samples could have been compromised.    Fresh samples have been sent to the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) for

Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo has warned of stern punishment for misconduct and other lapses in discipline, his office said Monday, in the wake of a series of embarrassing incidents at the barracks, such as noncommissioned officers molesting a same-sex superior officer. In a letter to all service members, the minister said there were a number of incidents that loosened the military's discipline, referring to cases of violation of human rights, insults of superiors and involvement in a digi

US Ambassador Harry Harris said in a tweet Sunday that the Global Hawk high-altitude unmanned aircraft was delivered to South Korea this week, adding that it's a "great day" for the two countries' alliance. Harris unveiled a picture of a Global Hawk unit parked in a hangar in an unidentified location, with the national flags of the allies hanging on a wall behind. On the body of the aircraft was text reading "the Air Force of the Republic of Korea," in Korean. "Cong