Despite a court ruling in favor of a soldier who was forcibly discharged after she received gender reassignment surgery, the military is still cautious about crafting a transgender policy because it is not ready to deal with the issue, military officials said Tuesday. In January 2020, Byun Hee-soo, who was the country’s first openly transgender soldier, was dismissed from the Army, which found her mentally and physical unfit to serve after she had her male genitals removed. Byun filed a l

Eight Army soldiers have tested positive for COVID-19, raising the total caseload reported among the military population to 1,973, the defense ministry said Tuesday. Six trainees at a boot camp in Yeoncheon, 62 kilometers north of Seoul, were found to have contracted the virus while in quarantine following the coronavirus outbreak in their unit. They were not fully vaccinated. An Army officer based in Yangju, north of Seoul, and an enlisted soldier stationed in Paju, 30 km north of the capital

A biennial defense exhibition kicked off in Seongnam, south of Seoul, on Tuesday, offering an in-depth look at state-of-the-art military hardware like stealth jets, advanced missile interceptors and hydrogen-powered drones. The five-day Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (ADEX) at Seoul Air Base comes amid lingering regional tensions from North Korea's evolving threats and an intensifying Sino-US rivalry. This year's edition is expected to provide a rare chance for defense

Twenty-three people affiliated with the US Forces Korea (USFK) who have recently arrived here have tested positive for COVID-19, the US military's infection tally showed Monday. Among arrivals from Sept. 22 to Oct. 14, seven service members and eight family members who landed at Osan Air Base on US government-chartered flights tested positive, according to the USFK. Another group of six service members and a Department of Defense employee, and a family member also tested positive upon arrival

SEONGNAM -- South Korea will kick off a biennial defense exhibition this week to showcase cutting-edge military hardware and technologies, including stealth fighters, hydrogen-fuel drones and laser weapons, organizers said Monday. The Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhibition (ADEX) will begin its five-day run on Tuesday at Seoul Air Base in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, as the security landscape in Northeast Asia is fraught with uncertainties stemming from a muscle-flexing China

A top US military official called Monday for strong space cooperation with South Korea, stressing credible deterrence in the "contested" security domain comes from a robust partnership based on "mutual trust and shared values." Gen. Jay Raymond, the chief of Space Operations at the United Nations Space Force, made the call during a security forum in Seoul, as a Sino-US competition is intensifying with Beijing pushing to become a major space power. "A key part of credib

South Korean Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. Park In-ho met with a delegation of senior US military and defense officials in Seoul on Monday to discuss bilateral cooperation ahead of a biennial defense exhibition later this week, his office said. The talks with the US delegation, including Heidi H. Grant, director of the Defense Security Cooperation Agency, and DeAnna M. Burt, deputy commander of the Space Operations Command, came a day before the Seoul International Aerospace & Defense Exhib

South Korea plans to start deploying a new military mine detector capable of locating non-metal objects, such as those made of wood, in the latter half of next year, the state arms procurement agency said Monday. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) signed a contract with local developer Hanwha Systems Co. last week to mass-produce the hand-held mine detector, as the military seeks to replace its aging detectors introduced in the late 1990s. Developed in December last year, th

Thirty-one people affiliated with the US Forces Korea (USFK) have tested positive for the new coronavirus, the US military's latest infection tally showed Friday. Among the new cases counted from Sept. 30 to Oct. 7 were 19 American troops, including those working at Camp Humphreys and Osan Air Base, both in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul. "All individuals are currently in isolation at a facility designated for confirmed COVID-19 cases," the US military said in a statement.

South Korea's military reported nine additional COVID-19 cases Friday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 1,960, the defense ministry said. Six Army soldiers, including five trainees at boot camps, and a Navy member tested positive for the virus, according to military data. A civilian employee of the defense ministry in Seoul was also found to have contracted the virus. Since last week, three COVID-19 cases, including the latest, have been reported from the ministry compound.

Maj. Gen Lee Sang-chul, commander of the 5th Infantry Division, was named as the new chief of the military intelligence body, the defense ministry said Thursday. The incoming commander of the Defense Security Support Command (DSSC) will be promoted to lieutenant general, the ministry said. “He was selected because of his outstanding capability and leadership to complete the reform of the DSSC and lead the organization in a stable manner,” the ministry said in a statement. The D

The defense ministry plans to provide financial compensation for South Koreans who operated in North Korea as part of US military intelligence units during the 1950-53 Korean War, officials said Thursday. The ministry will offer 10 million won ($8,400) each to the civilians who worked for the units, including the Korea Liaison Office (KLO), from 1948-1953, as they have been excluded from the compensation list due in part to limits in confirming their merit in foreign operations. During the wa

South Korea has found defects in all of the four Global Hawk unmanned surveillance aircraft it has procured from the United States, a ruling party lawmaker said Thursday, calling for measures to ensure their stable operation. Citing data from the Air Force during a parliamentary audit, Rep. Ahn Gyu-back of the Democratic Party said that defects have been found in the drones an average of 10 times each. From December 2019 through September last year, South Korea brought in four Global Hawks und

South Korea's military reported eight more COVID-19 cases Thursday, bringing the total caseload among its personnel to 1,951, the defense ministry said. Seven Army soldiers, including three trainees at a boot camp, and a Navy member tested positive for the new coronavirus, according to military data. The three Army trainees from the boot camp in Yeoncheon, 62 kilometers north of Seoul, were found to have contracted the virus while in quarantine following the COVID-19 outbreak in the unit. Of

The military should adopt clearer rules to enable victims of sexual violence to find immediate care and avoid being repeatedly forced to deal with their abusers, an advisory panel said Wednesday, ending a monthslong mission to address rights abuses in the military. The panel, launched in June following the alleged cover-up of the suicide of an Air Force master sergeant who had reported a sexual assault, recommended that the military expand outside oversight as well, with a civilian voting membe