Air Force chief to lead Joint Chiefs of Staff

From left are Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman nominee Jeong Kyeong-doo, Army Chief of Staff Kim Yong-woo, Air Force Chief of Staff Lee Wang-keun and ROK-U.S. CFC Deputy Commander Kim Byeong-joo. / Yonhap

By Jun Ji-hye

President Moon Jae-in nominated Air Force Chief of Staff Jeong Kyeong-doo to lead the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) in a military leadership reshuffle, Tuesday.

If Jeong gets National Assembly confirmation, he will be the first Air Force general to become the JCS chairman in 23 years. The position has been mostly dominated by the Army.

President Moon also promoted six lieutenant generals to four-star generals and assigned them to senior positions including chiefs of the Army and Air Force.

The reshuffle reflects President Moon’s will to reform the Army-dominated armed forces to achieve a better balance between the Army, Navy and Air Force, officials said.

The move is also designed to move the conventional Army-orientated military toward a future-oriented one with the most advanced weapons systems, at a time when North Korea is bolstering its so-called asymmetric warfare capabilities by developing nuclear weapons and missiles.

Moon earlier appointed retired Navy Admiral Song Young-moo as defense minister, a position that has also long been dominated by retired Army generals.

The Ministry of National Defense said the latest appointments were made to better prepare for the evolving nuclear and missile threats from the North.

“Those who can strongly push for defense reform and those who have all-around expertise in carrying out joint and combined exercises have been appointed to the positions,” the ministry said in a release.

Kim Yong-woo, who currently heads the JCS’s strategy and planning office, was appointed as Army chief of staff, while the Air Force’s Lee Wang-keun, the former Air Force Operations commander, was named as Air Force chief of staff.

Kim Byeong-joo, who commands the Army’s 3rd Corps, was tapped as deputy commander of the Republic of Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command (ROK-US CFC).

Moon also replaced the commanding generals of the 1st, 2nd and 3rd armies, including Gen. Park Chan-ju of the 2nd Operations Command. Park has been embroiled in controversy over allegations he and his wife exploited and disrespected soldiers assigned to serve at his official residence.

Park was transferred to a “policy study” section with no formal job title. The ministry said he would not be discharged as his military status needs to be maintained for military prosecutors to investigate the allegation.

Park Jong-jin, deputy commander of the 3rd Army, was appointed as commanding general of the 1st Army, while Park Han-ki, who commands the 8th Corps, was named to head the 2nd Operations Command.

Kim Woon-yong, commanding general of the 2nd Corps, was named as commanding general of the 3rd Army.