Military academy merger plan delayed amid ongoing deliberations: official
Officials take an oath during a parliamentary audit of the Army, Navy and Air Force academies at the Korea Military Academy in Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap
A detailed road map for the planned integration of military academies will likely be announced later than originally planned to ensure the ongoing deliberations reflect the positions of all stakeholders, a Seoul official said Friday.
The Lee Jae Myung administration is pushing to establish a single military academy by merging those of the Army, Air Force and Navy to enhance joint capabilities amid a declining birth rate and changing warfare environment driven by drones and artificial intelligence technologies.
However, the plan has faced strong pushback from active-duty service members and alumni groups, who regard the move as a politically motivated effort to weaken the Army and argue it will erode the capabilities of the individual service branches.
"We think that it will be physically difficult to announce (the detailed plans) before the end of this month," a defense ministry official told reporters on background. "We are still in the process of gathering opinions."
The delay appears to reflect Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul's earlier indication the ministry may rethink the plan considering the fierce opposition.
Speaking to reporters on his first day in office in September, Kang floated a "better way" for the integration, saying that the current plan does not mean the government was shutting down or abolishing the academies.
"I believe there could be a better way," Kang said during the press availability on Sept. 24. "As long as the Army, Navy and Air Force exist, there must be training institutions in one form or another."
Kang promised to gather as much input as possible from all concerned parties, stressing that the goal is to shape the military to produce outstanding leaders.
Under the preliminary blueprint unveiled by the government and the ruling party in July, the envisioned integrated academy will be established at Jaundae, a military training and education compound in the central city of Daejeon, about 140 kilometers south of Seoul.