South Korea's military on Wednesday denounced North Korea's launch of its first missile into an area close to the South's territorial waters since the division of the peninsula more than seven decades ago, calling it an "intolerable" act. Earlier in the day, the North launched at least three short-range ballistic missiles into the East Sea, one of which flew across its de facto maritime border with South Korea, according to the South's military. The Joint Chiefs of

South Korea and the United States kicked off their first large-scale joint air drills in nearly five years, with more than 240 aircraft mobilized, including their advanced stealth jets, as the allies strive to bolster deterrence against evolving North Korean threats, according to officials here. The Vigilant Storm exercise will run through Friday over the sky of the Korean Peninsula amid concerns that Pyongyang could may soon carry out a nuclear test. The North may also try to show its own firep

The South Korean and US defense chiefs will discuss how to enhance the alliance’s deterrence and readiness against escalating North Korean threats during their annual security talks, South Korea’s Defense Ministry said Sunday. Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup and US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin are set to host the 54th Security Consultative Meeting on Thursday at the Pentagon, outside Washington. Lee and Austin will discuss major alliance issues including the assessment of the securi

South Korea and the United States will hold major combined air drills, involving some 240 military aircraft, next week to verify the allies' wartime operational capabilities, the Air Force here said Friday, amid growing North Korean security threats. The five-day Vigilant Storm exercise is set to begin Monday, as Seoul and Washington are striving to sharpen deterrence amid concerns that Pyongyang could ratchet up tensions by conducting a nuclear test or other provocative acts. For the drill

The South Korean government will dispatch a naval ship and more than 100 personnel to Japan’s international fleet review next month, marking the first time it will participate since 2015. The Yoon Suk-yeol government has decided to accept Japan’s invitation to the international naval event hosted by the Japanese Maritime Self-Defense Force, South Korea’s Defense Ministry announced Thursday. The international fleet review is set to take place on Nov. 6  in Sagami Bay, off

S. Korea’s current focus is to enhance viability of the US extended deterrence

South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum has met with senior US commanders to discuss measures to beef up security and strategic cooperation on the Korean Peninsula, including the US provision of extended deterrence, the JCS said on Saturday. Kim visited US Strategic Command in Nebraska on Friday (US time) for talks with Commander Adm. Charles Richard on ways to strengthen coordination against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. Kim was accompanied by G

South Korea's Navy is seeking to create a new command running unmanned ships, submarines and aircraft in the 2040s, the armed service said Friday, in an effort to address a potential troop shortage caused by the country's low birthrate. During a parliamentary audit, the Navy unveiled a series of policy goals, including removing one of the three fleet commands and creating the new command employing unmanned naval assets. The envisioned command is to comprise three units -- the unmanned

The top military officers of South Korea, the United States and Japan emphasized the importance of trilateral security cooperation against North Korea's threats during their Pentagon meeting, as Washington reaffirmed its commitment to the defense of the regional allies, according to a joint statement. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum participated in the Trilateral Chief of Defense Meeting, along with his American and Japanese counterparts -- Gen. Mark Milley and Gen. Koji

WASHINGTON -- The top military chiefs of South Korea and the United States discussed ways to deal with North Korean provocations, the office of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said Wednesday. South Korea's JCS Chairman Gen. Kim Seung-kyum and his U.S. counterpart, Gen. Mark Milley, also reaffirmed their commitment to denuclearizing the Korean Peninsula in the annual Military Committee Meeting held in Washington, according to a press release from the South Korean JCS. "Th

South Korea and the United States will kick off large-scale air drills involving US F-35B stealth jets later this month, Seoul officials said Tuesday, as they seek to sharpen their deterrence against potential North Korean provocations. The drills are set to take place over South Korean airspace from Oct. 31-Nov. 4, with the South Korean Air Force set to mobilize some 140 warplanes, including F-35A, F-15 and KF-16 fighters. The US military plans to deploy around 100 aircraft, including F-35B ste

After months of clashing opinions about K-pop sensation BTS’ military exemption, the band’s agency Big Hit Music announced Monday evening that the seven bandmates would enlist in the military in order, starting from Jin, the oldest member. The band’s agency said via a press release that Jin will cancel postponing his enlistment at the end of this month and will adhere to the Military Manpower Administration’s enlistment procedures. It added that the other six bandmates

South Korea will hold a major air show in a southern city next week to showcase an array of its military aircraft, including the homegrown KF-21 fighter under development, Seoul officials said Thursday. The four-day Sacheon Airshow is set to begin at an air base in Sacheon, South Gyeongsang Province, next Thursday after a yearslong hiatus caused by COVID-19. Launched in 2004, the annual air show is co-hosted by the Air Force, the Sacheon municipality and Korea Aerospace Industries. It will featu

South Korea lost track of a missile fired during last week's live-fire drills held in response to a North Korean intermediate-range ballistic missile (IRBM) launch, Seoul officials said Thursday, in a failure that raised questions over the missile's performance. The missile was one of the two Army Tactical Missile System (ATACMS) missiles that the South Korean military fired into the East Sea following the North's IRBM launch on Oct. 4. The US Forces Korea also fired two ATACMS mi

The United States on Tuesday reiterated its goal of achieving complete denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula and extended its deterrence commitment to South Korea, as North Korea’s nuclear saber-rattling has sparked a debate on the redeployment of US tactical nuclear weapons in South Korea.North Korea’s pronouncement that the recent flurry of ballistic missile launches aimed to simulate striking South Korea with tactical nuclear weapons has generated a whirlwind of discussions on