South Korea - The Korea Times

US to sell Seahawk choppers, Harpoon missiles to Korea

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The United States is moving to sell eight advanced multi-purpose helicopters and 18 naval missiles to Korea, worth nearly $1.1 billion, according to a defense agency here. The Defense Security Cooperation Agency said it has notified Congress of possible sales to South Korea of eight MH-60R Seahawk multi-mission helicopters, along with related parts, equipment, training and logistical support for an estimated cost of $1 billion. It also informed Congress of another plan for a foreign military sale to Seoul for 18 UGM-84L Harpoon anti-ship missiles to be carried by submarines. The expected cost is $84 million. The agency, affiliated with the Defense Department, said the possible deals come at the request of the Korean government. It noted Seoul is a key regional ally of Washington. "It is vital to the U.S. national interest to assist our Korean ally in developing and maintaining a strong and ready self-defense capability, which will contribute to an acceptable military balance in the area," it said. The agency added there will be no adverse impact

May 25, 2012

Korea, Australia set for first joint naval drill next week

The Korean and Australian navies will hold their first joint drill next week off the southern coast of South Korea, officials said Thursday, amid concern that North Korea may conduct a third nuclear test. The two-day drill, set to begin Monday off the northeastern coast of Jeju Island, will be focused on sharpening their combined abilities in detecting and tracking enemy submarines and torpedoes, Seoul's Navy officials said. About 10 warships and submarines from the two nations, including Australia's 3,759-ton guided-missile warship, the Ballarat, and South Korea's Aegis-equipped destroyer, the Sejong the Great, will be involved, officials said. Korean Lynx helicopters and P3-C anti-submarine surveillance aircraft will also be mobilized, officials said. "The navies from the two nations are expected to strengthen their joint capabilities in anti-submarine warfare," a Navy official said on the condition of anonymity. The Australian warship made a port call in the southern port city of Busan earlier in the day to participate in the drill, code-named "Haedori-Wallaby,"

May 24, 2012

Korea gets more legal jurisdiction over US troops: official

The U.S. military in Korea agreed Wednesday to give more legal jurisdiction to Seoul authorities over serious crimes involving U.S. troops before they are charged, a Seoul official said. The agreement, reached after a regular meeting earlier in the day over the bilateral Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) that governs the legal status of U.S. troops stationed in Korea, came nearly nine months after two American soldiers were accused of raping 18-year-old girls in South Korea in separate incidents. Under the revised agreement, Korean law enforcement officials can take U.S. military personnel into custody before the suspect is charged in cases of heinous crimes such as murder or rape, said a senior official at Seoul's foreign ministry. "With the new agreement, we can extradite a suspect from the U.S. military even before an indictment," the official said on the condition of anonymity. Korea's legal authorities can hold the arrested suspect under custody until a preliminary investigation is completed under the presence of U.S. government officials, according to the offic

May 23, 2012

Korea plans to 'drastically' beef up missile arsenal against NK

Defense ministry has requested 2.5 trillion won ($2.1 billion) over the next five years to "drastically" beef up its missile arsenal to better cope with missile and nuclear threats from North Korea, a military official said Tuesday. The budget request was made at a meeting of relevant ministers on fiscal policy, headed by President Lee Myung-bak on April 28, the official said, days after the South's military unveiled a new cruise missile that can hit any target in North Korea. "The Ministry of National Defense requested budget funds to drastically strengthen its missile arsenal to cope with threats by North Korea, at the conference on national finance on April 28," the official said on condition of anonymity. At the conference, the ministry proposed it "needs 2.5 trillion won in its budget over the next five years" to bolster its missile capability, including long-range cruise missiles and the locally-produced GPS-Guided Bomb, the Korean version of the Joint Direct Attack Munition, the official said. North Korea defied international warnings and launched a long-range

May 22, 2012

Korea working to forge military cooperation pact with China: defense ministry

Korea is working on a plan to forge a military cooperation pact with China, the defense ministry said Monday, in what appears to be an effort to soften the possible backlash a similar accord with Japan could cause. Defense Ministry spokesman Kim Min-seok said that South Korea and China have shared the need for a mutual logistical support treaty for years as the two countries have conducted joint maritime exercises for humanitarian search and rescue operations. Kim also said South Korea already signed such a treaty with Russia in 2009. The pact, known as the Acquisition and Cross-Servicing Agreement or Mutual Logistic Support Agreement, calls for exchanging most common types of support, such as food, fuel, transportation, ammunition and equipment, during peacekeeping and other operations. South Korea has also pushed to conclude one with Japan, which would mark the first-ever military agreement between the two countries since Japan's 1910-45 colonial rule of Korea. But the government has been cautious because forging a military pact with the former colonial ruler could cau

May 21, 2012

Korea to map out plan to counter bioterrorism

Korea plans to set up a five-year plan to better protect itself from possible biological terrorist attacks, the country's public health and safety agency said Monday. The 2013-2017 plan calls for extensive research and development (R&D) to create vaccines and antidotes, quick detection and precise diagnosis of harmful agents, and the collection of related information through international cooperation, the Korea Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (KCDC) said. It said that the plan calls for utilizing the latest nano-biotech and advanced convergence technologies to effectively cope with threats, and stockpile vaccines and drugs. As part of the countermeasure initiative, the KCDC plans to authorize clinical tests on anthrax so drugs can be developed locally by 2013. In addition, Seoul said it wants to enhance nationwide monitoring for harmful agents by developing advanced detection kits. The public health agency said that it will continuously receive input from experts in the field and push forward necessary R&D to protect the country and people from potential b

May 21, 2012

Defense chief shelves plan to visit Japan, cautious about military pact

Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin said Thursday he has postponed a plan to visit Japan this month and will take a cautious approach toward signing a military pact with Tokyo. Korea and Japan have been in final stages of talks to reach two agreements on sharing military intelligence and logistics, in what would be the first such pacts since Japan's colonial rule over Korea ended in 1945. Seoul's defense ministry said on May 8 that Kim planned to visit Japan this month. "I had planned to sign a General Security of Military Information Agreement when I visit Japan in May, but decided not to visit in May due to concerns about handling the issue with more haste than caution," Kim told Rep. Park Ji-won, floor leader of the main opposition Democratic United Party, during a meeting earlier in the day. Kim's statements were quoted by Park's spokesperson, Lee Eon-joo. "As public attention is high on a military pact with Japan, I will not handle the matter with more haste than caution but handle it throughout discussions at the National Assembly," Kim was quoted as telling Park. Offi

May 18, 2012

Third high-altitude spy plane delivered for deployment

The Air Force has taken delivery of a third advanced surveillance plane from U.S. aircraft giant Boeing on Thursday, officials said, to strengthen South Korea's capacity to carry out aerial surveillance of North Korea. The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said in a statement the Air Force will soon deploy its third E-737 Airborne Early Warning and Control plane, dubbed "Peace Eye" in South Korea. In 2006, South Korea reached a US$1.6 billion deal with Boeing to buy four modified versions of the high-altitude surveillance aircraft. The first two planes were delivered to the Air Force last year. The DAPA said that under Boeing's supervision, Korea Aerospace Industries, a local aerospace company, manufactured the radar system and other electronic parts for the third E-737. The E-737, equipped with a sophisticated radar system called a Multi-role Electronically Scanned Array, can detect and monitor up to 1,000 airborne or surface targets simultaneously. (Yonhap)

May 17, 2012

White House dismisses call for East Coast missile base

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The White House made clear Tuesday that it opposes the proposed construction of a missile defense base along the East Coast to counter threats from North Korea and Iran. In a statement, the White House said the call by the House Armed Services Committee, dominated by Republicans, is "premature." Last week, the panel passed an amendment to the National Defense Authorization Act for fiscal year 2013. It calls for the U.S. to build a third missile defense site on the East Coast to beef up the capability to intercept possible intercontinental ballistic missiles from North Korea and Iran. The U.S. now has missile defense bases in California and Alaska. "The Administration is disappointed, however, with the many provisions in this bill that impede the ability of the Secretary of Defense to carry out the 2012 defense strategic guidance," the Office of Management and Budget at the White House said. "Section 223, which would require a missile defense site on the East Coast of the United States, is premature because the Administration has not identifie

May 16, 2012

US skeptical of Seoul's longer-range missile ambition: ex-official

WASHINGTON (Yonhap) -- The United States is skeptical of South Korea's push to extend its ballistic missile range, according to a former top Pentagon official. Michele Flournoy, who served as under secretary of defense for policy until February, emphasized that countering North Korea's missile threats is a matter to be handled from the perspective of the alliance. "We should approach that as a problem for the alliance. We should look at not only what capabilities does South Korea need but also what capabilities do we as an alliance need," she told Yonhap News Agency after a forum Tuesday on U.S. defense strategy at the American Enterprise Institute. Flournoy, who while in office took part in a sensitive discussion with Seoul on that matter, said South Korea can explore ways to maximize the effect of the alliance before using its resources to build its own extended-range missile system. "We have such a close alliance, and political commitment is so rock-solid," she said. "I think that there are better ways to solve the problem." South Korea is prohibited from developin