The Korea Herald

‘Dolphin diplomacy’ features in Seoul Defense Dialogue

Sept 9, 2015

President Park Geun-hye’s attendance at China’s much-trumpeted military parade last week underscored both increasingly tricky diplomatic challenges facing South Korea, and the potential of its middle-power diplomacy to seek a delicate balance between the U.S. and China. Hwang Jae-hoPark’s trip to Beijing from Sept. 2-4 came amid escalating concerns that it could further reinforce the growing impression that Seoul is tilting too much toward Beijing at the expense of its traditional security alli
Budget plan focuses on border defense

Sept 9, 2015

Seoul has earmarked 38.95 trillion won ($32.7 billion) in its proposal for next year’s defense budget, an increase of 4 percent from the previous year, as it seeks to beef up defense capabilities to better counter North Korea’s evolving military threats.“To realize a robust security, we have reflected the security situations, including North Korea’s recent provocations, and our strong resolve to address them in our budget planning for next year,” Vice Defense Minister Baek Seung-joo said during
Park calls for international security mechanism

Sept 9, 2015

President Park Geun-hye on Wednesday underscored the need for a multinational security mechanism in East Asia, saying it would help bring about not only a unification of the Korean Peninsula but also lasting peace and stability in the region. In her keynote speech to the Seoul Defense Dialogue, she pointed to what she called the Asian paradox as a threat to global peace -- regional instability stemming from the perennial standoff on the peninsula and persistent territorial and historical spats b
Forum to draw world defense officials, experts

Sept 8, 2015

High-level defense officials from some 30 countries and global organizations are set to gather in Seoul this week to discuss pressing security issues around the region and the world and explore ways to counter emerging unconventional threats. Hosted by the Defense Ministry, the Seoul Defense Dialogue will kick off on Wednesday for a three-day run with the theme “70 years of the Post-WWII Era and the Division of Korea.” The vice-ministerial conference is its fourth edition this year.The participa
‘Expensive weapons purchases to burden next government’

Sept 7, 2015

By Shin Hyon-heeThe Park Geun-hye government is pushing to bring in advanced, pricey military assets without a budget commensurate with the size of the projects, heaping a financial burden of billions of dollars onto its successor, a report said Monday.After analyzing 22 weapons acquisition programs each worth 500 billion won ($415 million) or more, Rep. Baek Kun-ki of the New Politics Alliance for Democracy said the incumbent administration is expected to spend some 13.6 trillion won for defens
S. Korea, U.S. launch joint 3-day drill against bio threats

Sept 7, 2015

South Korea and the United States launched a joint anti-biological exercise on Monday to step up their combined response to potential biological attacks, the Ministry of National Defense said.The three-day Able Response 15 exercise will involve the defense departments of the allies as well as the local health ministry and dozens of other institutions, according to the ministry. "The latest South Korea-U.S. biological defense exercise will examine and enhance the countries' combined response syst
S. Korea, U.S. to hold joint bio-defense drill next week

Sept 3, 2015

South Korea and the United States plan to conduct a joint drill next week on countering possible biological attacks on the Korean Peninsula, the Defense Ministry said Thursday. The exercise, titled "Able Response 15," will take place from Monday to Wednesday at the state-run Korea Institute for Defense Analyses to increase preparedness for various biological threats, including disease and terrorism, according to the ministry. The annual drill, the fifth of its kind, will bring together some 20
Court rules against release of U.S. forces crime data

Sept 1, 2015

An appeals court ruled Tuesday that the government does not have to unveil the information of cases involving U.S. soldiers if it has relinquished its right to exercise jurisdiction over them under the South Korea-U.S. Status of Forces Agreement, upending the original judgment. Under SOFA, which governs the legal status of some 28,500 U.S. troops stationed across the southern part of the peninsula, South Korea can primarily invoke judicial power when a serviceman is implicated in crimes, except
Military deserters down 40% in three years

Aug 31, 2015

The number of South Korean servicemen who deserted from the military has steadily declined by more than 40 percent over the past three years, a report said Monday, reflecting ongoing efforts to improve barrack lives. According to the report submitted by the High Court for Armed Forces to Rep. Seo Young-kyo of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy, 415 people broke barracks last year, up about 41.4 percent from 708 in 2011. The annual figures have been nudging downward, albeit w
S. Korea resumes search for remains of war dead

Aug 31, 2015

South Korea's military launched another round of massive excavation work Monday in search of remains of soldiers killed during the 1950-53 Korean War. More than 40,000 troops from 14 units will be mobilized for the months-long project, a team in charge of the operation at the Defense Ministry said. They will excavate two dozen sites across the country including the Suribong area in Yanggu, Gangwon Province. Nicknamed "Bloody Ridge Line," it was a Korean War battlefield where around 20,000 Sout
S. Korea, U.S. flaunt combined artillery power in

Aug 28, 2015

South Korea and the United States performed a joint war simulation on Friday involving live-fire bombings and flights of combat jets in the latest show of joint force against North Korea.The allies mobilized the biggest-ever number of troops, artillery pieces and military vehicles for this year's Integrated Firepower Exercise 2015, marking the 70th anniversary of Korea's liberation from Japan's colonial rule in 1945. Under the scenarios of a local attack and all-out aggression by North Korea, th
War plan upgrade reflects N.K. WMD threats, U.S. military shifts

Aug 27, 2015

The new wartime contingency plan of South Korea and the U.S. is presumed to address the growing concerns over North Korea’s evolving weapons of mass destruction and likely to reflect changes in the U.S. force structure and strategy, analysts said Thursday.Seoul and Washington reportedly signed the so-called Operations Plan 5015 in June to replace OPLAN 5027, the core wartime plan that laid out detailed procedures for the allied militaries to handle a full-blown war initiated by North Korea’s agg
New war plan to pave way for preemptive strike on N.K.

Aug 27, 2015

South Korea and the U.S. have forged an upgraded operational plan that will pave the way for a preemptive strike such as in a contingency case involving the use of weapons of mass destruction, military sources said Thursday. The OPLAN 5015 was formulated last June to replace OPLAN 5027 by the chairmen of the two countries’ Joint Chiefs of Staff. The allies have, since 1974, been assessing their joint defense plan every year, primarily to devise better responses to North Korea’s military threats.
[Newsmaker] War plan upgrade reflects NK WMD threats

Aug 27, 2015

The new wartime contingency plan of South Korea and the U.S. is presumed to address the growing concerns over North Korea’s evolving weapons of mass destruction and likely to reflect changes in the U.S. force structure and strategy, analysts said Thursday.North Korea soldiers pledge allegiance in front of the statues of North Korea’s national founder Kim Il-sung and former leader Kim Jong-il on Tuesday. (Yonhap)Seoul and Washington reportedly signed the so-called Operations Plan 5015 in June to
S. Korea, U.S. sign upgraded war plan focused on dismantling N. Korean WMDs

Aug 27, 2015

South Korea and the United States have signed an upgraded operational plan that puts a fresh focus on removing North Korea's weapons of mass destruction, a military official said Thursday.In June, the allies signed OPLAN 2015, which will be put into action in case a war breaks out on the Korean Peninsula, according to the official."The militaries of both countries drew up OPLAN 2015, which replaces OPLAN 5027, with their Joint Chiefs of Staff chairmen signing it in June," the official noted. For