South Korea Holds Major Military Parade That Showcased An Arsenal Of Advanced Weaponry

 

CNN: South Korea showcases missiles, drones and tanks in rare military parade 

South Korea showcased an arsenal of advanced weaponry in a military parade on Tuesday, rolling tanks and missiles down the streets of its rain-soaked capital during the first event of its kind in a decade. 

The parade, held to mark the 75th Armed Forces Day commemorating the founding of the country’s armed forces, comes against the backdrop of rising tensions on the Korean peninsula, as South Korea draws closer to the United States and Japan against the threat of North Korea’s accelerating weapons program. 

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WNU Editor: South Korea is also issuing a warning to North Korea .... Seoul warns of N Korean regime termination, if nuclear weapons used (RFA). 

South Korea Holds Major Military Parade That Showcased An Arsenal Of Advanced Weaponry  

S. Korea holds rare military parade, warns NK against nuclear attack -- Korea Herald 

South Korea flexes military muscle with parade, issues dire warning about North's nuclear pursuit -- FOX News  

South Korea holds 1st major military parade in a decade -- DW

South Korea Aims To Be Major Global Arms Seller

 

Reuters: S. Korea aims to become world's largest arms dealer 

South Korea is racing to become a major player in the world’s market for weapons, eager to tap into Europe’s hunger for arms. 

At this factory on its southern coast, automated robots and workers are churning out artillery vehicles destined for Poland. 

It's all run by Hanwha Aerospace, already the globe’s top maker of howitzers. 

The company is a big part of the $14 billion-dollar arms deal that the South Korean government struck with Poland last year - as Western countries scrambled to arm Ukraine and tensions spike in areas from North Korea to the South China Sea. 

Reuters spoke to more than a dozen executives and officials who say the deal will pave the way for Seoul’s ambitions to be a world-class weapons supplier.  

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Update #1: Inside South Korea's race to become one of the world’s biggest arms dealers (Reuters) Update #2: Rise of South Korean arms exports (Van Ybiernas, Manilla times)  

WNU Editor: South Korea has the manpower, resources, and infrastructure to become a major global dealer in arms. And they are making it known that they can sell their weapons cheaper.

South Korea Is Exporting Billions In Arms But Not To Ukraine

South Korean Marine Corps drills. Wikimedia Commons/Republic of Korea Armed Forces 

DNYUZ/New York Times: They’re Exporting Billions in Arms. Just Not to Ukraine. 

CHANGWON, South Korea — A year after Russia invaded Ukraine, the war has spurred a global effort to produce more missiles, tanks, artillery shells and other munitions. And few countries have moved as quickly as South Korea to increase output. 

Last year, South Korea’s arms exports rose 140 percent to a record $17.3 billion, including deals worth $12.4 billion to sell ​tanks, ​howitzers, ​fighter jets and multiple rocket launchers to Poland, one of Ukraine’s closest allies. 

But as South Korea expands weapons sales globally, it has refused to send lethal assistance to Ukraine itself. Instead, it has focused on filling the world’s rearmament gap while resisting any direct role in arming Ukraine, imposing strict export control rules on all its sales. 

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WNU Editor: South Korea wants customers who pay. Sending arms to Ukraine means only two things. You are giving it to them for free, or it will be paid at some date in the far future. 

Here is a good article from 6 years ago that predicted the rise of South Korea as a major arms exporter .... South Korea: Arms Dealer to the World? (National Interest).

South Korean President Yoon Orders A Revamp Of The Military's Response To Violations Of It's Air Space

President Yoon Suk-yeol speaks at the Agency for Defense Development in Daejeon on Thursday morning. (Yonhap)  

Reuters: South Korea's Yoon orders revamp of response to violations of country's air space 

SEOUL (Reuters) -South Korea's President Yoon Suk-yeol ordered a revamp of the military's response to objects violating its airspace, his office said on Thursday, after an intrusion by North Korean drones exposed its difficulty in shooting down small aircraft. 

Five North Korean drones crossed into South Korea on Monday, prompting South Korea's military to scramble fighter jets and attack helicopters, though it failed to bring down the drones, which flew over South Korea for hours. 

Amid criticism over South Korea's air defences at a time of North Korea's growing nuclear and missile threats, Yoon visited the state-run Agency for Defence Development to check the country's reconnaissance and interception capabilities and called for an overhaul of the response system against "all flying objects". 

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Update: Yoon orders military to secure peace with superior war preparation (The Korea Herald)  

WNU Editor: This revamping is justified. North Korea's drones should not be underestimated .... Don't underestimate North Korea's drones: US analyst (Korea Times).  

Update #2: This is embarrassing .... Flock of birds flying near South Korea mistaken for another North Korean drone (Washington Examiner).

South Koreans Are Shaken By North Korea's Recent 'Drone Invasion'

 

DNYUZ/New York Times: South Koreans’ Steely Nerves Are Shaken by North Korean Drones 

SEOUL — When Washington and Seoul warned earlier this year that North Korea was planning its seventh nuclear weapons test, most South Koreans hardly batted an eye.

Many in the South have grown so used to North Korean saber rattling that they often dismiss the country’s frequent military provocations as predictable attempts to garner attention. But this week, North Korea was able to shake the steely nerves of many South Koreans using a weapon much cheaper and less sophisticated than a nuclear warhead.  

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WNU Editor: Even though this border incursion shocked many South Koreans, North Korean drones still have problems .... Despite border incursion, North Korean drones face fuel shortages, frequent crashes (RFA).

South Korea Fired Warning Shots And Launched Fighter Jets After North Korea Flew Five Drones Across The Border. One Fighter Jet Crashed During operations

 

Reuters: South Korea scrambles jets as North Korea sends drones over border 

SEOUL (Reuters) -Five North Korean drones crossed into South Korea on Monday and South Korea responded by scrambling jets and attack helicopters and opening fire to try to shoot down the North Korean aircraft, the South Korean military said. 

As part of its response, the South Korea military also sent surveillance aircraft into the North to photograph its military installations, a South Korean military official said. 

"This is a clear act of provocation by the North violating our airspace," a South Korean official with the Joint Chiefs of Staff, Lee Seung-o, told a briefing. 

One of the five North Korean drones flew near the South Korean capital, Seoul, and the others flew near the west coast.  

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WNU Editor: This is an incredibly provocative move by North Korea. The last time that they did something like this was during the height of tensions in 2017.

 South Korea Fired Warning Shots And Launched Fighter Jets After North Korea Flew Five Drones Across The Border  

South Korea scrambles jets, fires shots as North Korean drones intrude on southern airspace -- ABC News Australia

S. Korea launches jets, fires shots after North flies drones -- AP  

Seoul says military fired at N. Korean drones after incursion -- AFP  

South Korea scrambles jets as North Korean drones ‘violate airspace’ -- The Guardian/Reuters

North Korean drone reaches north of Seoul -- BBC  

S. Korea scrambles jets, copters after North sends drones over border -- UPI  

South Korea fires at North Korean drones that crossed border -- DW

South Korea Has Become One Of The World's Biggest Weapons Suppliers

ThemaNews: South Korea has quietly become one of the world’s biggest weapons suppliers 

South Korea has quietly become a favorite of arms buyers around the world, in the culmination of a decades-long effort to protect itself from North Korea 

The international arms trade has largely flowed West to East, with North American and European countries accounting for a whopping 87% of weapons exports from 2017 to 2021. 

This year South Korea has shown it’s ready to change that. Poland agreed this summer to purchase tanks, self-propelled howitzers and light attack planes from South Korea in deals worth $8.8 billion. 

The two countries topped it off last week with a $3.6 billion agreement for rocket launchers. It’s the first time that a NATO member other than Turkey has turned to defense contractors outside the alliance for major weapons systems.  

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Update #1: US worried South Korea would become EU's substitute weapons supplier (Al Mayadeen)  

Update #2: South Korea delivers a multibillion jolt to the American Military-Industrial Complex (TFI Global)  

WNU Editor: The South Korean President made it very clear a few months ago that he wants South Korea to be one of world’s top weapons suppliers .... President Yoon wants South Korea to become one of world’s top weapons suppliers (CNN).

South Korea Gives Up On Its Carrier Ambitions (For Now)

U.S. Navy Photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Michael Chen/Released  

Warzone/The Drive: South Korea Drops Aircraft Carrier Ambitions, Doubles Down On Submarines 

Instead of a new aircraft carrier, Seoul is investing in advanced missile submarines that better suit a strategy aimed at confronting North Korea. 

South Korea’s ambitious plans to build its first aircraft carrier, known as CVX, appear to be under serious threat, with the news that the project has not been funded as part of the country’s proposed 2023 defense budget. That also raises questions about Seoul’s plans to operate F-35B stealth fighters but should be good news for its submarine fleet, which is earmarked to receive more funding, including for Dosan Ahn Changho class attack submarines capable of launching ballistic missiles. 

Confirmation that the CVX is not to be funded in 2023 came yesterday from Naval News, which had already predicted that South Korea’s carrier program could lose out in the next defense budget.  

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Update: CVX officially axed from South Korean defense budget in 2023 (Naval News)  

WNU Editor: My guess is that they made the decision was made that such a vessel would not last long in a shooting war.

Are We Near The Formal Official End To The Korean War?

 

The Guardian: North and South Korea agree ‘in principle’ on formal end of war 

Pyongyang has made end to US hostility a precondition for peace talks after almost 70 years of conflict South and North Korea, China and the US have agreed “in principle” to declare a formal end to the Korean war, almost 70 years after the conflict ended in a shaky truce, the South Korean president, Moon Jae-in, has said. 

But Moon conceded that talks on the 1950-53 war were being held back by North Korean objections to present-day “US hostility”. 

Speaking in Canberra on Monday during his four-day visit to Australia, Moon said he believed the four main parties agreed in principle to a peace declaration. 

But he added that North Korea had made an end to US hostility a precondition for talks.  

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Update #1: Korean War end-of-war declaration agreed in principle: Moon (ABC News) 

Update #2: North and South Korea agree 'in principle' to formally end Korean War after 70 years (Next Shark) 

Update #3: What Does Agreement 'in Principle' on an End-of-War Declaration Mean? (The Diplomat)  

WNU Editor: The Korean war will officially end one day. But not anytime soon.

Both North And South Korea Fire Ballistic Missiles On Wednesday

 

CNN: Both North and South Korea fire ballistic missiles as tensions rise on peninsula 

Seoul, South Korea (CNN)Both North and South Korea tested ballistic missiles on Wednesday, ratcheting up tensions exponentially in what was already one of the most volatile regions on the planet. 

Pyongyang fired the first missiles on Wednesday, sending two into waters off the east coast of the Korean Peninsula five minutes apart, at 12:38 p.m. and 12:43 p.m. local time (11:38 p.m. and 11:43 p.m. ET), according to Japan's Coast Guard. 

Seoul followed that test less than three hours later, firing a new submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM) from the submerged 3,700-ton submarine ROKS Dosan Ahn Changho, South Korea's Defense Ministry said. 

The missile hit its target accurately, the ministry said without giving more details. South Korean President Moon Jae-in was present for the test, the ministry said.  

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WNU Editor: This is why the latest North Korean missile test is concerning .... North Korea Is Now Launching Ballistic Missiles From Trains And That's A Big Deal (Warzone/The Drive). 

More News On North And South Korea Firing Ballistic Missiles On Wednesday  

Both North and South Korea fire off ballistic missiles -- Business Insider  

North Korea test fires 2 more missiles, South Korea answers with landmark weapons tests of its own -- CBS/AP  

Moon says S. Korea's SLBM development can be deterrent to N. Korean provocation: Cheong Wa Dae -- Korea Herald  

North Korea launches two ballistic missiles as fears grow over nuclear capability -- Mirror  

Japan: North Korea missile launch a threat to region -- The Hill  

North Korea fires 2 ballistic missiles; Japan's Suga rips test as 'absolutely outrageous' -- FOX News 

North Korea Missile Launch Poses No Immediate Threat, U.S. Military Says -- Newsweek

South Korea's Planned New Aircraft Carrier May Have A Distinctly British Flavor

Hyundai Heavy Industries' conceptual design bidding for South Korea's first light aircraft carrier  

CNN: South Korea's new aircraft carrier could look like a mini HMS Queen Elizabeth 

Seoul (CNN)South Korea's planned aircraft carrier could have a distinctly British flavor. In fact, it could be a mini version of the Queen Elizabeth. 

Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) this week signed a memorandum of understanding with top British defense contractor, Babcock International, to work together to design and build the new CVX, South Korea's light aircraft carrier. 

"This partnership is to collate the core technologies of the two companies to win an order for the basic design of a light aircraft carrier and to build a ship. Hyundai Heavy Industries and Babcock had successfully completed the conceptual design, the first stage of ship design, last year," a statement from Hyundai said.  

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WNU Editor: Hyundai says the 30,000-ton level ship would be 260 meters (850 feet) long and 57 meters (187 feet) wide. By comparison, the UK's Queen Elizabeth class is 65,000 tons, 920 feet long and has a beam of 240 feet.

80% Of The Crew Aboard A South Korean Destroyer Have Tested Positive For Covid-19

 

CNN/Reuters: More than 80% of the crew aboard a South Korean destroyer have tested positive for Covid-19 

South Korea's military has recorded in biggest cluster of Covid-19 infections to date, with more than 80% of personnel aboard a navy destroyer on anti-piracy patrol in the Gulf of Aden testing positive. 

While the 247 cases are not directly linked to new domestic infections, with the destroyer Munmu the Great having left South Korea to start its mission in February, the surge comes as the country battles its worst-ever outbreak of Covid-19 cases at home, with another 1,252 new infections reported for Sunday. 

The country's Joint Chiefs of Staff said on Monday that just 50 of the ship's complement of 301 personnel had tested negative in an outbreak first reported on July 15. 

Authorities have begun an operation to airlift them home, while a replacement team will steer the vessel back.  

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More News On 80% Of The Crew Aboard A South Korean Destroyer Being Tested Positive For Covid-19  

South Korean gov't apologizes over virus-stricken destroyer -- AP  

South Korea Evacuates Navy Ship After Nearly Entire Crew Contracts Coronavirus -- US News and World Report  

PM apologizes for failure to prevent mass virus outbreak within Cheonghae unit -- Korea Herald/Yonhap

South Korea Unveils Its New KF-21 ‘Boramae’ Stealth Fighter

 

Asia Times: South Korea soars into elite group with KF-21 fighter 

President Moon hails homegrown next-gen prototype as a 'new era of independent defence' 

Hailed by President Moon Jae-in as “a historic milestone in the development of the (South Korean) aviation industry,” the nation unveiled its homegrown supersonic jet fighter on Friday, joining an exclusive club of military aviation giants, CNN reported. 

Once operational, the KF-21 — which looks very much like the American F-35 — is expected to be armed with a range of air-to-air and air-to-surface missiles, and possibly even air-launched cruise missiles.   

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More News On South Korea Unveiling Its New KF-21 ‘Boramae’ Stealth Fighter  

South Korea unveils prototype of homegrown KF-X fighter jet -- Defense News  

South Korea's Moon hails prototype fighter jet as 'new era' of defence independence -- The Guardian/Reuters 

South Korea Unveils Prototype of Homegrown Fighter Jet KF-21 -- Business Korea  

S. Korea to begin KF-21 fighter production, deploy up to 120 units by 2032: Moon -- Korea Herald  

South Korea rolls out prototype of new KF-21 Boramae fighter jet -- Defence-Blog  

Meet South Korea's New KF-21 "Hawk" Indigenous Fighter -- Warzone/The Drive

South Korea rolls out the KF-21, joining elite group of global supersonic fighter jet makers -- CNN  

Photos: South Korea Unveils First New KF-21 ‘Boramae’ Stealth Fighter -- Sputnik

South Korean Navy Releases Images Of Its Planned First Aircraft Carrier.

Popular Mechanics: Hmm, South Korea’s First Aircraft Carrier Looks Awfully Familiar 

 * The South Korean Navy has released images of its planned first aircraft carrier. 

 * The carrier will operate the same version of the F-35 used by the U.S. Marine Corps. 

The ship bears a strong resemblance to the Royal Navy’s new carriers, but there are important differences. 

South Korea’s Navy has shared images of the country’s first aircraft carrier. 

The unnamed ship, which will carry the vertical takeoff and landing version of the F-35, will take to the seas sometime in the 2030s. 

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WNU Editor: South Korea says it will be in service by 2033.

Seoul Mayor Found Dead After Being Reported Missing

Business Insider: Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon — a #MeToo supporter — a was found dead of an apparent suicide just over a day after an employee filed a sexual harassment claim against him

* Park Won-soon was reported missing by his daughter on Thursday hours after he left the house.
* His daughter told police that Park gave her a "will-like" message before leaving his home in the morning, according to the Associated Press.
* A sexual harassment claim was filed against Park a day earlier.
* Police told local media early Friday morning that his body had been found.

Park Won-soon, the mayor of the South Korean capital city of Seoul, has been found dead, according to local media.

Park was reported missing by his daughter on Thursday evening, hours after he left their home and gave her a "will-like message," the Associated Press reported.

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More News On Seoul's Mayor Found Dead After Being Reported Missing

Missing Seoul mayor’s body found after massive search -- AP
Prominent mayor of South Korea's capital found dead amid allegation of impropriety -- Reuters
Park Won-soon: Seoul mayor found dead after being reported missing -- The Guardian
Seoul's mayor found dead, after seven-hour search -- CNN

South Korean Parliamentary Election Exit Polls: Governing Democratic Party Projected To Secure A Historic Majority

NK News: South Korea’s ruling party on course to win legislative elections: exit polls

South's Democratic party has pursued a policy of engagement and reconciliation with North Korea

South Korea’s ruling Democratic Party (DP) and its satellite Civil Together Party (CTP) may have secured a historic majority in this week’s legislative elections, a joint exit poll by South Korean broadcasters projected as voting ended on Wednesday evening.

The exit poll by Korea Election Pool (KEP), reported by broadcasters KBS, MBC, SBS, forecasted that the ruling party and the CTP is set to win between 153 and 178 seats in the South’s National Assembly out of a total 300 seats.

If confirmed, the results will represent the largest majority for a liberal South Korean political party in 16 years.

The main opposition United Future Party (UFP) and its satellite Future Korea Party (FKP), in turn, is expected to win between 107 to 133 parliamentary seats.

Full results are expected early Thursday morning.

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WNU Editor: In times of crisis. And this pandemic is a mother of a crisis. The electorate in democracies do not have a habit of changing governments. South Korean President Moon Jae-in and his ruling Democratic Party (DP) have not been popular for the past year. But I am not surprised by the exit polls showing that he is heading for a historic win. The South Korean electorate have been shaken by this pandemic, and they are not even remotely ready to change the government. I predict the same result is going to happen in other countries, the U.S. included.

More News On South Korea's Governing Democratic Party Projected To Secure A Historic Parliamentary Majority In Today's Election

South Korea's ruling party is projected to win majority in parliamentary election: exit polls -- Reuters
High turnout in South Korean election despite virus fears -- AP
Coronavirus: South Korea holds elections in masks and clinics -- BBC
High voter turnout in South Korea elections amid COVID-19 crisis -- UPI
South Koreans head to polls despite coronavirus outbreak -- CNN

Does South Korea Want Nuclear Weapons?

US President Donald Trump meets Kim Jong-un at the Korean Demilitarized Zone, June 30, 2019. Credit: Public Domain.

Byong-Chul Lee, Bulletin Of The Atomic Scientists: Don’t be surprised when South Korea wants nuclear weapons

There are two major variables that factor into South Korea’s calculus on starting a nuclear weapons program: the feasibility of North Korea abandoning its nuclear weapons voluntarily, and the guarantee of America’s extended deterrence in the event of the nuclear crisis on the peninsula. Both are trending in the wrong direction.

North Korea’s intermittent nuclear threats have increasingly weighed on the minds of the broader public in South Korea, and South Koreans have started to suspect that there’s no ray of hope left for the complete denuclearization of North Korea. “Denuclearization is the dying wish of Kim Il-sung, the founder of the regime,” South Koreans have heard countless North Koreans say. But the North’s assertion that the founder’s dying wish is still operative is at best disingenuous and at worst an outright lie. In hindsight, denuclearization was dead on arrival.

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WNU Editor: South Korea has the resources and means to develop and build nuclear weapons. But as long as the US "nuclear umbrella" covers them, there is no public or political will to do so. But in the event that North Korea continues with their nuclear program, and the U.S. does abandon its nuclear protection agreements and understandings with South Korea, the South Korean push to develop their own program will be overwhelming. And if that does happen, do not be surprise if they even test one.

Former South Korean President Park Sentenced To 24 Years For Corruption

BBC: Park Geun-hye: South Korea's ex-leader jailed for 24 years for corruption

South Korea's former President Park Geun-hye has been sentenced to 24 years in jail after she was found guilty of abuse of power and coercion.

The verdict was broadcast live and represents the culmination of a scandal which rocked the country, fuelling rage against political and business elites.

Park, who was also fined 18bn won (£12m, $17m), faced a string of corruption charges.

The former leader was not in court on Friday for the verdict.

She has boycotted her trial hearings and has previously accused the courts of being biased against her. She has also denied all wrongdoing and has said she will appeal against her sentence.

Read more ....

WNU Editor: This is a life sentence.

More News On Former South Korean President Park Being Sentenced To 24 Years For Corruption

The Latest: Lawyer of ex-President Park hints at appeal -- AP
Ex-President Park gets 24-year jail term -- Korea Times
S. Korea's Park jailed for 24 years for corruption -- AFP
South Korean court jails former president Park for 24 years -- Reuters
Ex-S. Korean leader Park gets 24-year prison term -- AP
Park Geun-hye, South Korea's Ousted President, Gets 24 Years in Prison -- New York Times
South Korea's ex-President Park Geun-hye receives 24-year jail term -- DW
Park's downfall: from student protests to 24-year sentence -- AFP

Former South Korean President Park Geun-hye's Corruption Verdict To Be Announced Today

Reuters: South Korean court to deliver verdict on ousted Park

SEOUL (Reuters) - A South Korean court is set to deliver its verdict on former President Park Geun-hye on Friday with prosecutors seeking a 30-year jail term over a scandal that exposed webs of corruption between political leaders and the country’s conglomerates.

Park became South Korea’s first democratically elected leader to be forced from office last year when the Constitutional Court ordered her out over a scandal that landed the heads of two conglomerates in jail.

Park’s ouster led to a presidential election won by the liberal Moon Jae-in, whose conciliatory stand on North Korea has underpinned a significant warming of ties between the rival neighbors.

Park, 66, who has been in jail since March 31 last year, is not expected to be in court when it delivers its verdict and, if she is found guilty as expected, hands down a sentence.

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Update #1: Former South Korean Leader Park Due for Corruption Verdict (US News and World Report/AP)
Update #2: Verdict due in corruption trial of S. Korea's ex-president Park -- AFP

WNU Editor: She is facing a possible 30 year sentence.

Many South Koreans Oppose Using The Olympics To Open Ties With North Korea

NPR: In South Korea, A Backlash Against Olympics Cooperation With The North

Efforts to make a show of North Korean and South Korean unity at the next Olympics are drawing a backlash in South Korea. In Seoul, protesters Monday set fire to the North Korean flag and a photo of Kim Jong Un. The South Korean president's approval rating has dropped in recent days as well.

"We oppose, we oppose, we oppose," shouted demonstrators at Seoul Station, the rail and subway station in the center of the capital. They showed up to confront a North Korean advance team that had arrived to scout out Olympic venues.

The Olympics cooperation between the North and South came about just this month. Athletes from the two Koreas will march under one unified flag and will form a joint North-South women's hockey team.

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WNU Editor: South Korean President Moon Jae is personally very popular in South Korea .... but his policy of using the Olympics to influence the North Koreans to enter into talks with the U.S. on their nuclear arsenal is not being warmly embraced by many South Koreans. I know that among my many South Korean friends .... they are not comfortable with this approach. And among the older generation .... doubly so.

More News On The South Korean Backlash On Using The Olympics To Cooperate With North Korea

S. Koreans burn Kim's photo as N. Korean band leader passes -- ABC News/AP
South Koreans slam North Korea participation, unification flag at Winter Olympics -- FOX News
South Korea's president drops in polls as few support plan to include North Koreans on Olympic team -- Business Insider
South Korean protesters burn images of Kim Jong-un in Seoul -- International Business Times
South Koreans Burn Kim Jong-un Photo, Protest Visit of N Korean Delegation -- Sputnik