Top military officer to convene emergency meeting over series of security breaches

Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) Chairman Gen. Park Han-ki called an emergency meeting of major military commanders on Thursday in the wake of a series of civilian intrusions into military bases, the defense ministry said.

The meeting slated for later in the day is to devise and implement more "pragmatic and fundamental measures" to prevent any recurrence based upon what was discussed during such a meeting presided over by Defense Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo on Tuesday, according to spokesperson Choi Hyun-soo.

In the latest security failure case, an intoxicated man in his 50s dug under the fence surrounding an air defense outpost in Siheung, south of Seoul, on Monday and went inside, according to the JCS.

The case came less than two weeks after the military failed to detect two civic activists intruding into a naval compound on the southern island of Jeju and wandering around for about two hours.

The authorities also belatedly disclosed another case that happened on Jan. 3 in which a mentally ill man in his 70s got into the Jinhae Naval Command in the southeastern city of Changwon without being stopped.

"Today's meeting is meant to ensure the full and swift implementation of countermeasures," a JCS officer said.

During Tuesday's meeting, Minister Jeong strongly reprimanded top commanders and called for extraordinary measures, saying that there is no excuse for such lapses. (Yonhap)