SEOUL, Dec. 4 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s unification minister publicly criticized the United Nations Command (UNC) on Wednesday, revealing that it had recently barred a senior presidential security aide from entering the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), reviving long-standing tensions over the scope of the UNC’s authority. Speaking at a National Assembly hearing on legislation to expand [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 3 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea approved a defense budget of 65.9 trillion won, or about $44.8 billion, for next year, a 7.5 percent rise as the government moves to reinforce its three-axis deterrence strategy and accelerate the modernization of its armed forces. The National Assembly passed the 727.9 trillion-won national budget late [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — The state arms procurement agency on Tuesday launched a 435.9 billion-won project (US$296 million) to develop short-range air-to-air guided missiles to be equipped on South Korea’s homegrown KF-21 fighter jets. Under the plan, the country aims to develop guided missiles for homegrown fighter jets by 2032, in its bid [...]
SEOUL, Dec. 2 (Korea Bizwire) — President Lee Jae-myung on Tuesday forcefully dismissed renewed proposals for South Korea to pursue its own nuclear weapons program, calling the idea “impossible” and warning that it would trigger immediate international backlash. Speaking at a Cabinet meeting at the presidential office, Lee addressed growing calls from some opposition lawmakers to [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 28 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea has created an interministerial task force to spearhead the development of an advanced aircraft engine for its next-generation fighter jets, an effort aimed at joining the small group of nations capable of producing such high-end defense technology, government officials said on Friday. The new body brings together [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 27 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s defense ministry on Thursday vowed to keep up its arms industry cooperation with Poland after a domestic defense firm failed to win a contract to supply next-generation submarines to the European country. On Wednesday, Poland said it has chosen Swedish defense firm Saab as the winner of [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 26 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea is set to transfer a retiring 1,200-ton submarine to Poland free of charge, military sources said Wednesday, in apparent support for a South Korean defense firm bidding for the European country’s submarine procurement project. Under the plan, the defense ministry is expected to hand over the ROKS [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 25 (Korea Bizwire) — Seoul police announced on Tuesday that they will carry out an unannounced, citywide crackdown on traffic violations by motorbikes, bicycles and personal mobility devices such as electric scooters, amid rising safety concerns and a surge in related accidents. The Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency said it will deploy 354 officers from [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 22 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korean police have ruled that actress Nana, formerly of the K-pop group After School, and her mother acted in legitimate self-defense when they overpowered an armed intruder who broke into their home in Guri, northeast of Seoul. The Guri Police Department said on Saturday that the suspect, a man [...]
SEOUL, Nov. 18 (Korea Bizwire) — North Korea on Tuesday issued its first official response to last week’s U.S.–South Korea summit, denouncing the joint fact sheet and Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) statement as fresh evidence of what it called Washington and Seoul’s “hostile and confrontational intent.” In a lengthy commentary carried by the Korean Central News [...]