The United States is displeased with South Korea's disclosure of information related to its troubled fighter jet development project, multiple sources here said Monday.  South Korea has sought the transfer of two dozen technologies from the ally in its $15-billion program, codenamed KF-X, aimed at producing its own fighter jet to replace the aging fleet of F-4s and F-5s.  This desire for technology is one of the key reasons for Seoul's decision last week to buy 40 F-35s from Lockheed Martin.  Bu

South Korea will develop a stealth unmanned aerial vehicle to counter North Korea's long-range artillery and mobile missile systems, a South Korean defense official said Sunday.The development is part of the 31 research projects to be conducted by the South Korean military by the end of next year, the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Yonhap News Agency.These stealth UAVs will stand by at higher altitudes than other aerial defense systems owned by North Korea and thwart the ene

Korea Aerospace Industries forged a strategic partnership Friday with PT Dirgantara Indonesia, a state-run plane developer, as it seeks to expand its foray into the Southeast Asian country’s defense market following the export of its trainer aircrafts. Under the agreement, the two firms will crank up cooperation in the areas of both military and civilian aviation and the development of unmanned aerial vehicles and other systems by creating a joint panel and holding two rounds of meetings every y

The country’s defense budget is set to hike 3.6 percent to 38.8 trillion won ($33.3 billion) next year on the back of an increase in salaries and production costs of utility helicopters and other weapons systems. Overall, more than 27.1 trillion won was allotted for force operations, while some 11 trillion won will be spent to advance defense capabilities such as by continuing the establishment of the Kill Chain and the Korea Air and Missile Defense preemptive strike systems slated to be complet

A U.S. Army brigade with some 4,500 troops will deploy to South Korea early next year as part of a regular rotation of forces, the Department of the Army announced.The 1st Cavalry Division's 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team will replace the 2nd Armored Brigade Combat Team that was deployed in June under a decision to replace a permanent brigade, which had been stationed in South Korea since 1965, with a rotational unit.Rotation takes place every nine months."The 1st Cavalry Division reflects mutu

The United States will provide maximum support for South Korea's indigenous fighter jet development project, the State Department said Tuesday, dismissing speculation that Washington might be reluctant to back the program.The State Department is responsible for approving U.S. defense giant Lockheed Martin's promised transfer of key technologies to South Korea for the fighter program, known as the "KF-X" project.Speculation about U.S. reluctance arose after reports that the department was negativ

The Air Force on Tuesday launched its newly expanded tactical air control group to meet the military’s growing needs of joint operations. The organization is an upgrade from the previous tactical air control group established in 1961 as a training unit for joint air-ground operations and to take charge of close air support operations and air control during missions to destroy enemy weapons. To improve the duty effectiveness and communications with other military branches, the Air Force plans to

A new Marine Corps brigade was launched Tuesday to undertake a mission to defend the southern resort island of Jeju and its adjacent area, the Marine Corps said.The new 9th Brigade will take over the mission to secure the safety of the southern island area from the Navy-led Jeju Defense Command, which was recently decommissioned in a reshuffle.The Navy established the new Jeju Naval Base Squadron in lieu of the dissolved command to take charge of a naval base which will be launched early next ye

South Korea's reliance on nuclear power is the fourth-largest in the world while its use of renewable energy ranks near the bottom, a report showed Monday.According to the World Factbook by the U.S. Central Intelligence Agency, Asia's fourth-largest economy possessed a total installed power generation capacity of 94 gigawatts, placing it 13th in the world. The country's annual electricity generation output stood at 517 terawatts placing it 11th, while it ranked 10th in terms of consumption at 48

Concluding two decades of preparations and controversies, the Navy is set to unveil a new naval base on the southern resort island of Jeju, where it could launch warships against North Korea's potential provocations in a dramatically shortened amount of time. The construction work for the Jeju civil-military sea port base, spanning nearly 500,000 square meters with docks running some5 kilometers in the direction of the East China Sea, is 96 percent complete as of late November, according to Capt

CLARK AIR BASE, Philippines (AFP) -- The Philippines took delivery of two South Korean-made FA-50 aircraft on Saturday, marking the country's return to supersonic fighter jet status after almost a decade, amid growing tensions with China.The two new aircraft are the first of an order of 12 and signal a new readiness by Manila to assert itself militarily.The two fighters, flown from Seoul by South Korean pilots, were met in Philippine airspace by two S211 jets which escorted them to the former US