South Korea has sent Navy and Marine troops to participate in one of the world's largest military exercises held every year in Thailand later this week, the Marine Corps said Sunday.Cobra Gold, a regional drill initiated by the United States and Thailand, will run from Monday to Feb. 20 this year. The largest Asia-Pacific exercise was started in 1981 and has been an annual fixture in the Southeast Asian nation.This year would mark the sixth time South Korea joins the pan-continental exercise. Se

South Korea will likely lack some 30 trillion won ($27.5 billion) to fund defense projects over the next five years, data showed Sunday, causing concern over a delay in key programs to boost military capabilities.According to the data by the defense ministry, the country's arms procurement agency, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration, estimated that 96 trillion won would be required to implement defense projects scheduled for completion between 2016 and 2020."The amount is some 30 tril

South Korea reaffirmed Thursday that it has not consulted with the United States on Washington's plan to deploy an advanced missile defense system on the Korean Peninsula.  The U.S. has expressed its desire to deploy a Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense battery, an integral part of its Missile Defense system, in South Korea, citing evolving threats from North Korea. It is designed to shoot down short-, medium- and intermediate-range ballistic missiles at a higher altitude in their terminal phas

South Korean President Park Geun-hye called on the military Thursday to maintain its readiness to deter North Korea's possible provocations amid tensions on the divided Korean Peninsula.  North Korea has ratcheted up rhetoric against South Korea over anti-Pyongyang leaflets and its planned annual joint military drills with the United States.  Propaganda leaflets critical of North Korea have long been a constant source of tension between the two rival Koreas. The tension flared up in October when

South Korea's top air carrier Korean Air Line Co. plans to sign a partnership agreement with Europe's Airbus this week to jointly bid for Seoul's indigenous fighter development program, officials said Thursday.  Codenamed KF-X, the 8.5 trillion won ($8.3 billion) project calls for South Korea to develop and produce some 120 fighter jets of the F-16 class to replace its aging fleet of F-4s and F-5s.  "The two sides reached a verbal agreement earlier this week to jointly bid for the development pr

The South Korean Air Force said Thursday it has started a large-scale aerial exercise involving indigenous light attack fighter jets as part of efforts to evaluate and improve its strategic and combat capabilities.  The exercise "Soaring Eagle" kicked off Monday for a two-week run at an air base in the central city of Cheongju, 137 kilometers south of Seoul, according to the Air Force.   The biannual drill, which was inaugurated in 2008 with air-to-air and air-to-surface operations across the co

The South Korean military is seeking to export $1 billion worth of an indigenous light attack aircraft to Peru, informed sources said Tuesday.“We’ve been pushing to sell 24 units of the FA-50 to Peru, and are planning to submit a proposal for Lima’s fighter purchase project this month,” said a source, requesting anonymity.“Factoring in the necessary logistics support, the total amount of the envisioned exports would reach $2 billion.”South Korea is likely to vie with Russia, Italy and China, wit

A nuclear-powered U.S. submarine has arrived in South Korea to participate in an annual joint military drill this week, a naval officer here said Monday.The USS Olympia (SSN-717), a Los Angeles-class submarine, carrying some 120 sailors, arrived in the southern port city of Jinhae, 410 kilometers south of Seoul, on Friday, to attend the joint Seoul-Washington three-day naval drill starting Thursday, the naval officer said, requesting anonymity."The submarine will join a South Korean fleet to lau

The Army is seeking tougher punishments for sex offenders in the military including immediate dismissal and demotion following a spate of recent sexual assault cases that have damaged public trust and troop morale. It is also considering employing a “one-strike” system in which senior officials, caught sexually harassing subordinate soldiers, will be forcibly expelled from the military for good, a senior Army official said.“We will toughen our disciplinary rules for sex crimes to mete out heavy

The South Korean Navy on Sunday inaugurated a submarine command as part of efforts to bolster its underwater capabilities and combat readiness against North Korea.The fleet of the command, based in the southern port city of Jinhae and led by a rear admiral, is composed of 13 submarines under the Ninth Submarine Flotilla, the Navy said in a statement.The Navy operates nine 1,200-ton submarines and four 1,800-ton subs, while planning to add five more 1,800-ton submarines to be built by 2019. In ad

An Army deserter addicted to online games has been arrested on charges of killing his mother and setting fire to her body, military police said Friday.The 21-year-old private first class identified only by his surname Kang, allegedly murdered his 54-year-old mother at their residence in Seoul and burned her body on Jan. 22, while failing to return to his unit in the country's eastern province of Gangwon after a leave, according to the military police.The enlistee "hit his mother on the head more