The Navy said Wednesday it is pushing to bring female officers on the nation's next-generation submarine as part of efforts to give equal opportunity for a growing number of female servicemembers."We are planning to allow female officers to serve on the next-generation 3,000-ton submarine set to be put into operation in around 2020," said a Navy lieutenant commander, asking for anonymity. "We are to select new talent starting 2017 and train them to serve duty."The submarine now under constructio

South Korea is seeking to buy two more early warning planes to step up its aerial surveillance capabilities over its expanded air defense identification zone, the Air Force said Wednesday.The South Korean Air Force has operated four Boeing 737-based Peace Eye airborne early warning and control aircraft since 2011.The number is dwarfed by Japan's 13 early warning planes.In December last year, South Korea announced a new Korean air defense identification zone (KADIZ) to counter China's unilateral

Army Chief of Staff Gen. Kim Yo-hwan made an official apology over a recent sexual abuse case involving a division commander, reiterating that the Army would maintain a zero-tolerance policy on sex crimes.During a parliamentary audit, Kim also pledged to strengthen education about sexual abuse and step up preventive efforts. Last week, a major general heading the 17th Infantry Division was arrested on charges of sexually harassing a female staff sergeant.“We regard the (recent) sexual abuse case

The Army is considering altering the current rank system for draftees to reduce the number of active-duty sergeants as part of efforts to reduce violence and abuse in the military, officials said Tuesday.Under the plan, only squad leaders will be given the rank of sergeant. Squad leaders will be selected from among corporals who perform well. The rest of soldiers will be promoted to sergeant on the day that they complete their mandatory military service.The plan also states that only those being

South Korea has deployed mobile surface-to-air missiles and amphibious armored vehicles to its border islands to better fend off a surprise North Korean infiltration of the islands, Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff said Monday.During a parliamentary audit, the JCS also stressed that it was maintaining top readiness to promptly respond to the North’s possible attacks by the North on civilian groups sending anti-Pyongyang leaflets in areas close to the inter-Korean border.“We have devised a plan to r

South Korea and the United States exchanged information on key features of the THAAD missile defense system, but there were no discussions on deploying the system to South Korea, Seoul's ambassador to Washington said Saturday."I am aware that there were consultations on the weapons system itself," Amb. Ahn Ho-young said in response to questions from lawmakers during a parliamentary audit of the embassy. "But there were no discussions at all about deploying a THAAD battery to the Korean Peninsula

The Army prosecution sought an arrest warrant against a two-star general on charges of sexually harassing a female staff sergeant between August and September on FridayHe was detained in his unit in Incheon the day before.Defense Minister Han Min-koo made a public apology over the incident ― the latest in a recent series of abuse cases in the military, which has sparked intense public criticism of moral laxity and indiscipline.The major general of the 17th Infantry Division, identified by his su

A Chinese fisherman was killed during the Coast Guard's crackdown on his ship's illegal fishing in South Korean waters Friday, officials said.The 45-year-old skipper, only identified by his surname Song, was shot by a South Korean Coast Guard officer on the ship in waters near Wangdeung Island in Buan County, North Jeolla Province, and transferred to a hospital in the southwestern port city, where he later died, Coast Guard officials said."He died at Mokpo Hangook Hospital around 11:20 a.m. An a

The military police sought a warrant Friday to detain an Army major general on charges of sexually molesting a female subordinate, officers said Friday.   In the latest in a series of abuse cases that have laid bare lax discipline among service personnel, the two-star general, whose identity was withheld, has been accused of sexually harassing the female non-commissioned officer at his office five times in August and September, according to the Army headquarters. He is in charge of an Army divis

South Korea’s highest court on Tuesday upheld a lower court’s decision to rule that the central government was responsible for cleaning up provincial government land that had been contaminated by U.S. Forces Korea from 1957 to 2007. The land, 73,243 square meters in size, is located in Paju, a border city between the two Koreas near the demilitarized zone in Gyeonggi Province. The central government put the land under the control of the USFK in 1957. U.S. infantrymen were stationed on the plot o