South Korea - The Korea Times

Saenuri calls for overhaul of missile defense system

By Yi Whan-wooThe ruling Saenuri Party has called for an overhaul of the country’s missile defense system, Monday, amid growing concerns over a possible missile attack from North Korean submarines.It also cited the need to further strengthen the alliance between South Korea and the United States and set up joint strategy to cope with the new type of threat from the North.“With our current missile defense system, we will not be able to take countermeasures against Pyongyang’s submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) if it has really succeeded in test-firing a SLBM,” party floor leader Rep. Yoo Seong-min said during an emergency security meeting at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul.“We need to conduct a thorough check-up on our anti-ballistic missile system and set up a new strategy accordingly.”Yoo and Defense Minister Han Min-koo joined the party’s other senior lawmakers and top-ranked military officials at the meeting.The party members also called for further cooperation with the international community and the United Nations to cur

May 11, 2015

South Korean nuclear envoy to visit U.S., China

  / YonhapSouth Korea's chief nuclear envoy will visit Washington and Beijing next week for talks with his counterparts on how to restart long-stalled negotiations with North Korea, Seoul's foreign ministry said Friday.Hwang Joon-kook, special representative for Korean peninsula affairs, will meet with his U.S. counterpart, Amb. Sung Kim, in Washington on Monday before visiting Beijing for talks with his Chinese counterpart, Wu Dawei, on Wednesday, the ministry said in a statement also released in Washington.Hwang's discussions are expected to focus on ways to hold "exploratory talks" with North Korea, a compromise form of negotiations aimed at meeting both Pyongyang's demand for unconditional resumption of talks and the U.S. insistence that any formal negotiations should begin only after Pyongyang takes concrete steps demonstrating its denuclearization commitment.Five dialogue partners with North Korea -- South Korea, China, Japan, Russia and the U.S. -- have reportedly reached a consensus on holding "exploratory talks" with Pyongyang, but the communist nation has not show

May 2, 2015

South Korean nuclear envoy to visit U.S., China

Opposition party grills government over THAAD issue

By Kim Hyo-jin The main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy (NPAD) questioned the government, Tuesday, about the potential deployment of an advanced U.S. missile system in South Korea. The second day of the National Assembly's four-day interpellation session focused on whether to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD). NPAD lawmakers expressed scepticism over the latest interceptor, questioning its capability to counter a nuclear attack from the North. “It is doubtful whether the shooting down a nuclear missile at the terminal stage would still prevent damage,” Rep. Baek Kun-ki said. “Amid intensifying debate over THAAD, the need for the Korea Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) system and the Kill Chain has been overshadowed,” he added.Instead of joining the U.S. missile defense, Seoul has been developing KAMD, a low-tier air defense program, and the Kill Chain, which is designed to launch strikes right after signs of imminent nuclear or missile provocations by the North are detected.NPAD’s Ahn Gyu-baek also stressed th

Apr 14, 2015

Deal or no deal

Complexity of Iran talks facing pressure from hardliners on both sidesBy Tong Kim Our Washington correspondent reports on the current issues facing the complexities of the bilateral relations with US and Iran on halting Iran's nuclear program.WASHINGTON – The State Department has confirmed Wednesday afternoon that Secretary John Kerry is staying another day in the Swiss city of Lausanne, to see if he can pull off a last minute agreement to rein in Iran’s nuclear program. John Kerry and his ministerial colleagues from the P-5 plus one – the U.S., Russia, Britain, France and China plus Germany -- had been negotiating with their Iranian counterpart for more than a year. But, they failed to agree on a preliminary political framework by an arbitrary deadline on March 31.On Tuesday, White House spokesman Josh Earnest alluded to the extension of talks with Iranians into the following day if ‘the talks continue to be productive, as they have recently been and if an agreement is not reached by the end of the day.”Even if an agreement is reache

Apr 2, 2015

Seoul to begin THAAD debate

By Kim Hyo-jin The government and the ruling Saenuri Party will hold a policy coordination meeting, Sunday, over the possible deployment of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense system (THAAD) on Korean soil, according to sources Friday. Controversy has been brewing over the issue recently after U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) acknowledged it conducted on-site examinations on candidate sites for the envisioned deployment of the advanced missile interceptor battery.“We will have a heart-to-heart talk on comprehensive security issues,” Rep. Won Yoo-chul, the Saenuri Party’s chief policymaker, said Friday during a meeting.It is expected that THAAD will be discussed Sunday along with civil servants' pension reform, the minimum wage and revitalizing the economy. “As THAAD is not an issue to be spoken about publicly, it will be discussed during a closed-door meeting after an opening speech,” a party source said.A vernacular daily said that the USFK carried out a feasibility survey for stationing THAAD early this year at five sites, including Pyeongtaek in

Mar 13, 2015

Seoul-Washington begin joint naval drill

NK threatens military action against drillBy Yi Whan-wooSouth Korea and the United States began joint naval maneuver drills as part of their annual spring Foal Eagle military exercise, the Navy said Friday.It added the two allies will carry out the drill in South Korean territorial waters on the West, East and South seas until mid-March.“We expect to boost joint operational capabilities between Seoul and Washington and solidify a strong joint defense posture,” the Navy said in a statement.South Korea’s three naval fleets will mobilize their ships, including 4,400-ton KDX-II type destroyer, the Ganggamchan, as well as Lynx helicopters, P-3C patrol planes and Coast Guard boats.From the U.S. side, the USS Michael Murphy (DDG-112) destroyer and MH-60 Seahawk helicopters will take part.According to Seoul Navy officials, this year’s drill comes early compared to previous years because of the operational schedule of U.S. Navy ships.Foal Eagle is a field training exercise slated to run through April 24.It will involve a set of land, sea and air maneuvers mobilizing ab

Feb 27, 2015By Yi Whan-woo

Jung Ho-sub named Chief of Naval Operations

By Jun Ji-hyeVice Adm. Jung Ho-subThe government named Vice Adm. Jung Ho-sub as new Chief of Naval Operations (CNO), Monday, after accepting the resignation from Adm. Hwang Ki-chul who was allegedly involved in corruption that produced a faulty naval salvage ship.“President Park Geun-hye will officially appoint Jung to the position today after approval at a Cabinet meeting,” the Ministry of National Defense said in a statement.According to Navy officials, Hwang offered his resignation to Defense Minister Han Min-koo on Dec. 29 to take responsibility for his purported involvement in the selection of a supplier who sold an outdated sonar system for the first domestically-made rescue and salvage ship, the 3,500-ton Tongyeong.On Dec. 16, the Board of Audit and Inspection (BAI) concluded that Hwang was deeply engaged in the case in January 2009 when he was serving as head of the department in charge of the vessel project at the military procurement agency. Based on the result of its inspection, the state auditor requested the ministry to take disciplinary action against him.Th

Feb 23, 2015

Jung Ho-sub named Chief of Naval Operations

Navy to launch submarine command

By Yi Whan-wooThe Navy will inaugurate its first submarine command early next month in Jinhae, South Gyeongsang Province, the Ministry of National Defense said Sunday.The command’s fleet will be composed of under 2,000-ton submarines to begin with, but will be expanded to vessels displacing 3,000 tons.“Feb. 2 is the date for the launch,” ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said, refusing to give other details.The inauguration of the command comes at a time when North Korea maintains a significant numerical superiority with its fleet of 70 subs, about 20 of them being of the 1,800-ton Romeo class. Recent reports have said the North is putting finish touches on an upgraded version of the Soviet-designed Romeo that it has converted into being vertical missile launch capable.The Navy currently operates nine 1,200-ton submarines and four 1,800-ton ones under its Ninth Submarine Flotilla in the port city of Jinhae.The fleet, led by a rear-admiral (lower half), is one of the Navy units. They include three commands that are led by rear-admirals (upper half).According to Navy so

Jan 11, 2015

Is cyber attack an act of war?

A soldier walks past a TV showing an advertisement for Sony Pictures’ “The Interview” at Seoul Station, Monday. / AP-YonhapObama says not yet but experts disagree By Yi Whan-wooNorth Korea’s alleged hack of Sony Pictures raises questions about whether state-sponsored cyber terror should be redefined as an act of war in the Internet era.The United States has fallen short of calling it that but is facing a great deal of internal and external pressure to address the North’s online attacks as bellicose behavior.Experts predict that it is only a matter of time before cyber attacks are called a new form of warfare and dealt with as nothing short of being aggression that is tantamount to the accepted definition of war.For U.S. President Barack Obama, such a cyber attack is still not seen as an act of war, although he accepted the Federal Bureau of Investigation’s (FBI) conclusion that Pyongyang was behind the hack.“I think it was an act of cyber vandalism that was very costly, very expensive,” Obama said in an interview with CNN Sunday. H

Dec 22, 2014By Yi Whan-woo

Cyber warfare to be included in military operations

By Kang Seung-wooThe Ministry of National Defense is now fully integrating cyber warfare into military operations amid growing security threats, military officials said Monday.In addition, the Cyber Command, which deals with the mission, will be put under the control of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS). The cyber warfare unit, established in 2010 to counter North Korean cyber attacks including hacking attempts, currently takes orders from the defense minister.“The government has been pushing to revise the Cyber Command Decree to have the JCS chairman control cyber warfare and other actions in case where they are considered necessary for traditional military operations,” a ministry official said.The Cyber Command’s activities have been regarded more as administrative measures rather than military operations and the unit recently decided to drop its long-held defensive tactics in cyber warfare and instead initiate proactive operations to better guard against online infiltrations in the wake of growing threats.“As cyber operations cannot be separated from physical

Nov 24, 2014By Kang Seung-woo

Defense