South Korean marines fired a Spike surface-to-surface missile and more than 200 artillery rounds from K9 self-propelled howitzers, staging a "routine" exercise near the tense western border with North Korea.According to the Marine Corps, the live-fire drills also involved AH-1S Cobra's 2.75-inch rockets, hosted by the Northwest Islands Defense Command in charge of defending the South's northernmost islands in the Yellow Sea, and the 6th Brigade."Conducted in our waters south of the Northern Limi

South Korean Defense Minister Song Young-moo visited the boot camp of a front-line Army unit Saturday amid fierce criticism about alleged human rights abuse by a four-star general.Meeting with new conscripts at the 28th Division in Paju, near the inter-Korean border, Song pledged efforts to reform the military culture, according to his ministry."Treating troops on the sacred duty of national defense unfairly or giving them private instructions can't happen," the minister said. "(I) will try to e

　Calls are mounting for a prosecutorial probe into the nation’s spy agency, after it was revealed that it had operated a 3,500-member cyber team to manipulate public opinion during the Lee Myung-bak administration. 　According to a special task force on the reform of the National Intelligence Service on Thursday, the NIS created as many as 30 units dedicated to posting online comments in favor of the then-conservative administration. 　The units then hired more than 3,500 civilians to post such co

An Army four-star general accused of abusing subordinates assigned to serve at his residence will face investigation, along with his civilian wife, the military said Friday.At a press conference, the Ministry of National Defense revealed that most of the allegations against Gen. Park Chan-ju, chief of 2nd Operational Command, and his wife were valid, including one that he made the so-called “housekeeping soldiers” wear electronic bracelets so they could be reached whenever needed. It also found

South Korea's Army has begun a painstaking investigation into possible human rights violations against rank-and-file soldiers assigned to serve at commanders' residence, an official said Friday.The Army is under fire for news reports that Gen. Park Chan-ju, commanding general of the 2nd Operational Command, and his wife treated "housekeeping" soldiers like slaves.(Yonhap)They were forced to do household chores under inhumane conditions, according to the Center for Military Human Rights Korea, wh

The US Air Force was preparing Tuesday to test an unarmed Minuteman 3 intercontinental ballistic missile with a launch from California, the fourth such test this year.The 30th Space Wing says the missile was to be launched between 12:01 a.m. and 6:01 a.m. Wednesday from Vandenberg Air Force Base, about 130 miles (209 kilometers) northwest of Los Angeles.An Air Force statement said the test would show the effectiveness, readiness, and accuracy of the weapon system. (AFP-Yonhap)Minuteman missiles

During the Roh Moo-hyun administration, South Korea launched a clandestine military project in 2003 to protect itself from North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats: developing its own nuclear-powered submarines and deploying them by 2020. 　Dubbed “362 initiative,” the program was derailed just a year later, with classified information leaked to the public and its nuclear activity brought under the scrutiny of UN nuclear watchdog International Atomic Energy Agency. 　After 13 years, calls for bui

South Korea said Tuesday it's seeking closer ties with Indonesia on defense goods as part of efforts to expand its overall arms trade.Defense Minister Song Young-moo plans to discuss the issue when he meets his Indonesian counterpart Ryamizard Ryacudu in Seoul later in the day, according to his office.He's on a trip to South Korea to attend a delivery ceremony for a submarine built by the local defense contractor Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering Co.Indonesia has ordered three diesel-elec

A dozen F-16 Fighting Falcons of the US Air Force will be deployed temporarily to South Korea in a demonstration of the Pentagon's continued commitment to regional security, the Pacific Air Forces said Tuesday.The aircraft and around 200 airmen from the 176th Fighter Squadron, Wisconsin Air National Guard are scheduled to arrive at Kunsan Air Base, some 180 kilometers south of Seoul, for a four-month rotation.The PACAF said they are due here in August but stopped short of revealing the exact sch

WASHINGTON -- The United States is ready to deploy the remaining parts of an advanced missile defense system to South Korea, the Pentagon said Monday with tensions rising over North Korea's latest missile test.The remark by Pentagon spokesman Navy Capt. Jeff Davis comes three days after North Korea test-fired a second intercontinental ballistic missile, marking a significant step forward in its pursuit of a nuclear-tipped ballistic missile capable of hitting the continental US. Shortly after the

South Korea and the United States are seeking to hold a meeting of their defense ministers at an early date to discuss North Korea's evolving missile threats, government officials said Monday.The two sides are pushing for the first meeting between Defense Minister Song Myoung-moo and his US counterpart Jim Mattis before the allies' annual Security Consultative Meeting slated for October, Seoul's defense ministry said.Song, a former Navy chief of staff, took office this month as South Korea's def

South Korea has begun consultations with the United States for resuming the deployment of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system, the defense ministry said Monday. "As for the deployment of six THAAD launchers, South Korea and the US will make a decision after consultations," Moon Sang-gyun, spokesman at the Ministry of National Defense, said in a press briefing. "Such discussion is currently going on, but further consultations are needed for the specific issues of when and how," he said.

A next-generation landing ship capable of transporting more troops and military hardware than existing vessels will be delivered to the Navy this week, the state arms procurement agency said Monday.The Cheonjabong, which will be delivered Tuesday, is the Navy's second LST-II ship acquired under the next generation landing ship project that calls for building a total of four such ships by 2018. The first ship, the Cheonwangbong, was delivered to the Navy in November 2014.The 4,500-ton Cheonjabong

　Tension is running high on the Korean Peninsula following North Korea’s second launch of an intercontinental ballistic missile, with the US sending strategic bombers in a show of force and Pyongyang warning Washington against its pressure on the regime. 　After taking off from Anderson Air Base in Guam, B-1B Lancers joined four South Korean F-15k fighter jets to conduct interception and formation training, and left the peninsula later in the day after finishing their 10-hour mission, according t

South Korea will put its "Surion" military helicopter to a formal test again on its anti-icing system within the next several months, the nation's arms agency said Thursday.The multi-role KUH-1 chopper was once an icon of South Korea's fast-developing defense industry, developed in 2009 by Korea Aerospace Industries in partnership with Airbus Helicopters.But it has become a source of public concern amid a series of reports of flaws including cracks in the airframe and a problem in the gearbox.Th