The Korea Herald

Team proposes employment incentives for conscripts

Dec 18, 2014

A panel to reform the culture of the military recommended Thursday that the Defense Ministry consider simplifying enlisted soldiers’ ranking structure and enhancing the military judicial system and the screening process for draftees unfit for military service.Wrapping up a four-month study, the panel also asked the ministry to allow conscripts to acquire academic credits from their military activities, and to receive extra points in recruitment exams at public organizations or firms after they a
‘Progress on info-sharing pact between Korea, U.S., Japan’

Dec 18, 2014

South Korea, the United States and Japan have produced significant progress on a pact on sharing their military intelligence to better deal with threats from North Korea, Seoul’s defense ministry said.Still, the three have yet to reach a final consensus on the issue, the ministry said, denying a report by Japan’s Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper that the allies will sign the deal within this year.In May, the three nations agreed to begin discussing the matter, stressing “the importance of sharing
Techwin signs howitzer export deal with Poland

Dec 18, 2014

South Korean defense firm Samsung Techwin on Wednesday signed a $310-million contract with Poland’s state-run firm Huta Stalowa Wola to deliver 120 indigenous K-9 self-propelled howitzers from next year through 2022.Under the contract, the first batch of 24 K-9s will be delivered to Poland through 2017, and the rest will be manufactured in Poland. It was the first K-9 export deal since 2001 when Samsung Techwin signed a contract to export 350 K-9s to Turkey.Samsung Techwin CEO Kim Chul-kyo signe
Progress made on military info-sharing pact between S. Korea,

Dec 18, 2014

South Korea, the United States and Japan have produced significant progress on a pact on sharing their military intelligence to better deal with threats from North Korea, Seoul's defense ministry said. Still, the three have yet to reach a final consensus on the issue, the ministry said, denying a report by Japan's Nihon Keizai Shimbun newspaper that the allies will sign the deal within this year. In May, the three nations agreed to begin discussing the matter, stressing "the importance of shar
Auditors demand disciplinary action against Navy chief

Dec 17, 2014

State auditors demanded Wednesday that the Defense Ministry take disciplinary action against Chief of Naval Operations Adm. Hwang Ki-chul in connection with a corruption scandal concerning the acquisition of a salvage ship.The Board of Audit and Inspection said that Hwang was “negligent” in reviewing the documents related to the purchase of a part for the 3,500-ton ship, Tongyeong, while working as a senior procurement official in 2009. Hwang has been suspected of having given preferential treat
S. Korea pushes to switch fighter jet contractor to Lockheed

Dec 17, 2014

South Korea began the official process Wednesday of changing the contractor for its project to upgrade the country's aging fleet of F-16 fighter jets amid controversy over the contractor's demands for a higher price, Seoul's arms procurement agency said. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said it presented its plan to change the contractor from London-based BAE Systems to American defense firm Lockheed Martin at its monthly defense project committee meeting presided over by
S. Korean relief troops in Philippines set to return home

Dec 16, 2014

South Korean relief troops stationed in the Philippines will return home next week after wrapping up their one-year mission to rebuild the country in the aftermath of Typhoon Haiyan, the military here said Tuesday. A total of 520 troops, mostly engineers and medics, were dispatched to Tacloban after the typhoon in November last year to help restore communities, provide medical services and prevent the outbreak of epidemics. Their initial six-month mission was extended for six months in June.
USFK likely to broaden operational scope

Dec 15, 2014

The Pentagon’s new defense innovation initiative indicates that U.S. Forces Korea may go beyond its current mission of deterring North Korea to undertake a larger regional and global security role, analysts said Monday.Capitalizing on new operational concepts backed by innovative, high-tech military assets, the USFK, largely a static force, is likely to be transformed into a force that is more versatile, expeditionary and easily deployable to any conflict outside the peninsula, they said.Last mo
Warrants sought for military officers over salvage ship project

Dec 14, 2014

Arrest warrants have been sought for two military officers on charges of taking bribes from a local company that supplied faulty parts to a Navy rescue and salvage ship, a pan-governmental investigation team said Sunday.The joint team of prosecutors, military officers and government officials said it has asked a military court to issue the arrest warrants for the two officials of the Defense Acquisition Program Administration.The two officers -- a Navy captain and a Navy commander identified onl
U.S. House passes bill on missile defense cooperation

Dec 10, 2014

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) ― The U.S. House of Representatives has passed a bill that calls for greater missile defense cooperation with South Korea and Japan against threats from North Korea.The legislation, H.R.3979, calls for the secretary of defense to conduct an assessment to identify opportunities for increasing missile defense cooperation with the two allies and evaluate options for enhanced short-range missile, rocket, and artillery defense capabilities to address threats from the Korean Penins
S. Korea adds 260 people to list of Korean War abductees

Dec 10, 2014

A South Korean government panel has confirmed 260 more people were abducted by North Korea during the 1950-53 Korean War, the unification ministry said Wednesday.The official number of South Korean citizens forcibly taken to the communist North during the war has jumped to 3,635, it said.The newly-recognized abductees include Han Nam-soo, who fought hard against Japan's colonial rule of Korea from 1910-45, said the ministry. The decision by the panel, chaired by Prime Minister Chung Hong-won, wa
U.S. Navy chief says rebalance to Asia ‘real’

Dec 9, 2014

Mabus notes PACOM chief nominee favors AirSea Battle concept
Defense Ministry may raise mental health requirements in conscription health check

Dec 7, 2014

The Defense Ministry is pushing changes in standards in draft exemptions for people with a history of mental illness, a ministry official said Sunday.“We’re working on revising the standards on a large scale in evaluating the depth of mental diseases during physical exam for conscription,” the official said. “In particular, we’re aggressively pushing for measures to lower the minimum history of hospital treatment in judging the level of mental disorders.”Currently, those who have received hospit
Defense ministry considers easing standards for exempting the mentally ill from conscription

Dec 7, 2014

The defense ministry is pushing changes in standards in draft exemptions for people with a history of mental illness, a ministry official said Sunday."We're working on revising the standards on a large scale in evaluating the depth of mental diseases during physical exam for conscription," the official said. "In particular, we're aggressively pushing for measures to lower the minimum history of hospital treatment in judging the level of mental disorders."Currently, those who have received hospit
No N. Korean tunnels found near Seoul: military

Dec 5, 2014

South Korea's military has detected no signs of underground tunnels allegedly dug by North Korea in two areas near Seoul, officials said Friday, vowing stern action against those who make false claims.Several conservative civic groups have claimed that they have found 12 underground tunnels -- six in the northern city of Yangju and another six in nearby Namyangju -- dug by the North to infiltrate the South."In order to dissipate suspicions, the military scoured the areas for four days from Monda