US Forces Korea Commander Gen. Robert Abrams is set to attend a three-day annual multilateral security forum in Seoul that kicks off Wednesday, officials said Tuesday, dispelling concerns about South Korea-US relations. Abrams, who is also commander of the Combined Forces Command, will be the highest-ranking US official to attend the eighth edition of the Seoul Defense Dialogue. The US had earlier declined the South Korean Defense Ministry’s request for the attendance of an assistant

South Korea's push for a prompt return of American military bases in the country has long been discussed between the allies and the US is also positive on the move, the defense ministry said Tuesday, guarding against any political interpretation of the issue. Last week, the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae vowed to push for a prompt return of 26 US Forces Korea (USFK) bases across the country, sparking speculation that it may signal a possible rift in the alliance following Seoul's decision to

The Navy hosted an international security forum on Tuesday, with hundreds of experts and naval officers exploring ways to boost maritime cooperation in Asia and beyond.Around 300 government and military officials and experts from more than 25 countries gathered at the 14th International Seapower Symposium to discuss the theme of "Enhancing maritime security cooperation for peace and prosperity in the Asia-Pacific." During the two sessions, the participants will assess the evolving mari

South Korea and the US seek to relocate their Combined Forces Command headquarters by the end of 2021 from Seoul to Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, ahead of the envisioned transfer of wartime operational control from Washington to Seoul, according to Defense Ministry officials Sunday.The tentative timeline was set by the allies following a meeting between Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo and then acting US Defense Secretary Patrick Shanahan in Seoul in June when they agreed to move the CFC headq

The US Forces Korea will end all services at a major military base in the heart of Seoul within this year to prepare the return of the land to the South Korean government, military officials said Saturday. The US military has been moving its bases from around the country to a refurbished garrison in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, since 2017. While the USFK headquarters and the Eighth Army have moved to the new headquarters, called Camp Humphreys, the US military has been preparin

Cheong Wa Dae said Friday it will redouble efforts for the early return of more than two dozen US Forces Korea bases.It was briefing media on the results of a weekly meeting of the National Security Council's standing committee.The USFK has been moving its bases nationwide mainly to a refurbished garrison in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul. It's named Camp Humphreys.The process of South Korea regaining the sites of the affected bases has been going slowly, however, partly due to ha

Seoul’s Defense Ministry maintained Thursday that it was closely working with the United States, following the remarks by US defense leaders expressing disappointment over South Korea’s decision to withdraw from an intelligence-sharing pact with Japan.The United States has been vocally critical of South Korea’s decision to terminate the General Security of Military Information Agreement with Japan. “As we have told you before, defense minister and the US Secretary of

A US reconnaissance plane flew over Seoul and surrounding regions Thursday, an aviation tracker said, on an apparent mission to collect intelligence regarding North Korea.The plane, believed to be an RC-135V, was detected in the skies above South Korea's capital city and Gyeonggi Province, Aircraft Spots posted on Twitter. The flight came amid concern the North could continue to conduct missile or rocket launches despite the conclusion of a combined military exercise between Seoul and Washington

South Korea is seeking a 7.4 percent increase in its defense budget for next year, as it strives to strengthen self-defense capabilities amid growing security uncertainties, the defense ministry said Thursday.The government has proposed a budget of 50.15 trillion won ($41.29 billion) for next year, up from this year's 46.7 trillion won. If approved, it will be the first time that the country's defense budget surpasses the 50 trillion-won mark. Of the total, the ministry plans to spend 16.69 tril

Trump administration reportedly wants $5 billion for US troops in Korea, five times current amount

South Korea's Cabinet approved the government's plan to clinch a military intelligence-sharing pact with Thailand on Tuesday to enhance defense cooperation with the Southeast Asian country.The approval, at a Cabinet meeting hosted by Prime Minister Lee Nak-yon, is aimed at building an institutional framework to exchange military secrets between the two nations. So far, South Korea has clinched the General Security of Military Information Agreement (GSOMIA) with 21 countries, including the United

Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo vowed Monday to maintain a staunch readiness posture for North Korean provocations as Pyongyang has ratcheted up tensions with projectile launches even after South Korea and the United States ended joint exercises.  "North Korea has heightened military tensions by firing a series of short-range projectiles and making verbal attacks against the South," he said during a speech at the first World Congress of Security Studies hosted by Korea Nati

South Korea wrapped up a military exercise on and around its easternmost islets of Dokdo in the East Sea on Monday after conducting the biannual maneuvers on the largest-ever scale amid an escalating row with Japan.The two-day exercise, the first of this year's two regular drills, involved all three services of the armed forces as well as the Marine Corps and the Coast Guard in a show of Seoul's determination not to back down in the row with Japan over wartime history and trade.The number of tro

The South Korean armed forces launched a two-day military exercise to defend the easternmost islets of Dokdo on Sunday amid growing tensions over trade and their shared history, in a show of its staunch defense stance against Japan's repeated claims to sovereignty over the cluster of rocks in the East Sea.The Navy announced that the drill involves Navy, Air Force and Army forces, such as naval warships and aircraft, as well as Army and Marine Corp troops."Indeed, it's an exercise to guard o

South Korea never used Japan's intelligence in analyzing North Korea's missile launches under the current Moon Jae-in administration, a senior official at the presidential office said Saturday, amid concerns over possible limits in countering the North's threats with the termination of an intel-sharing deal between Seoul and Tokyo. The official made the remark after North Korea fired two projectiles believed to be short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea earlier in the day, marking the s