Moon to replace five military chiefs

From left: New Army Chief of Staff Lt. Gen. Suh Wook, new Air Force chief Lt. Gen. Won In-choul, new ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command deputy commander Lt. Gen. Choi Byung-hyuk, new head of Ground Operations Command Lt. Gen. Nam Yeong-shin and new Marine Corps Commandant Maj. Gen. Lee Seung-do. Courtesy of Ministry of National Defense.

By Jung Da-min

The Republic of Korea Armed Forces will have new chiefs of the Army, Air Force and Marine Corps as well as a new deputy commander of the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command and chief of the Ground Operations Command, according to the Ministry of National Defense, Monday.

President Moon Jae-in will name the five new military leaders after a Cabinet meeting scheduled for April 9.

The five include Lt. Gen. Suh Wook, chief director of operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) as new Army chief of staff; Lt. Gen. Won In-choul, vice chairman of the JCS as Air Force chief; and Maj. Gen. Lee Seung-do, commander of the military readiness inspection group at the JCS, as Marine Corps commandant.

The three will replace Gen. Kim Yong-woo, Gen. Lee Wang-keun and Lt. Gen Jun Jin-goo, respectively. Kim Yong-woo and Lee Wang-keun started their terms in August 2017 and Jun Jin-goo in April that year.

Lt. Gen. Choi Byung-hyuk, vice Army chief of staff, will become deputy commander of the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command and Lt. Gen. Nam Yeong-shin will head the Ground Operations Command.

“The reshuffle decision has been made upon consideration of the ability and expertise to systematically and actively promote defense reform and preparation for the transfer of wartime operational control,” the defense ministry said.

“We will do our best to support peace efforts to denuclearize the Korean Peninsula and to implement a strong defense on which the people can rely.”