US Secretary of the Navy John Phelan visited South Korea's leading shipbuilders, HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Co. and Hanwha Ocean Co., Wednesday, as Washington seeks to strengthen bilateral cooperation in the sector under President Donald Trump. Phelan, on a two-nation Asia trip also involving Japan, visited HD Hyundai Heavy's headquarters in Ulsan, some 300 kilometers southeast of Seoul, and toured a yard where next-generation Aegis destroyers are being built. He then held talks with HD Hyundai

The military will conduct an inspection of the Air Force over its operational discipline and readiness posture this week, the Joint Chiefs of Staff said Tuesday, following an accidental bombing of a civilian town and a mistaken release of gun pods from an aircraft. The on-site inspection will begin later in the day, the JCS said in a notice to reporters, without providing further details. A JCS official said the inspection of Air Force fighter wings is set to run through Friday and may be extend

North Korea’s first official acknowledgment of its troop deployment to support Russia’s war in Ukraine, following around six months of silence, on Monday comes at a timely moment domestically to frame its participation in a more favorable light, as Russia claims momentum on the battlefield has shifted in Moscow’s favor ahead of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II. Observers in Seoul view that Pyongyang’s announcement is externally aimed at securing reciprocal commitments — effectivel

The Marine Corps said Monday it staged regular amphibious landing drills in a southeastern coastal city as part of efforts to maintain combat readiness. The drills took place at a coastal area in Pohang, about 270 kilometers southeast of Seoul, mobilizing some 3,200 troops, KF-16 fighter jets and various Navy vessels, including the ROKS Marado amphibious assault ship, according to the Marine Corps. Troops first scouted the area using reconnaissance drones before landing on the coast aboard amphi

A South Korean soldier at the inter-Korean border accidentally fired a machine gun toward North Korea last week, prompting the military to air broadcasts to notify the North of the mistake, military officials said Sunday. The accident happened at around 6:00 a.m. Wednesday when the soldier mistakenly fired a single round from the K6 heavy machine gun from a guard post inside the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas in Cheorwon County, about 70 kilometers north of Seoul, according to the

South Korea and the United States plan to hold their key regular defense talks in Washington next week, a Pentagon spokesperson said Thursday, in a sign that the allies are maintaining close security cooperation under the Trump administration to counter evolving North Korean threats. The spokesperson said that the Korea-US Integrated Defense Dialogue is set to take place at the Pentagon on Thursday and Friday. The upcoming meeting will mark the first KIDD gathering since US President Donald Trum

US Secretary of the Navy John Phelan is expected to visit South Korea as early as next week, sources with knowledge of the matter said Thursday, a trip likely aimed at discussing shipbuilding cooperation in line with the Donald Trump administration's initiatives. Phelan's office has finalized the plan and is fine-tuning the details of the itinerary with government officials and relevant industries in Seoul, according to the sources. Phelan is likely to visit major South Korean shipyards during h

South Korea, the United States and Japan held a working-level meeting in Seoul this week in preparation for the next round of Defense Trilateral Talks, the three countries' vice-ministerial-level security dialogue, the Defense Ministry said Thursday. The meeting took place Tuesday and Wednesday at the Defense Ministry headquarters in Yongsan, central Seoul, with participation from Andrew Winternitz, US deputy assistant secretary of defense for East Asia; Woo Kyung-seok, South Korea’s deputy dire

Two Chinese nationals were caught taking photographs near a US military base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, on Wednesday, just two days after being questioned and released for the same activity, officials said. On Monday, the pair had been stopped for photographing military facilities and aircraft near Osan Air Base. At the time, police had said there was no evidence of “anti-state activity” and released them without charges. The same decision was made when the duo were caught taking photogra

The head of South Korea's arms procurement agency held talks with high-level European Union and North Atlantic Treaty Organization officials this week to discuss ways to expand defense industry cooperation, his office said Thursday. Defense Acquisition Program Administration Minister Seok Jong-gun met European Commissioner for Defence and Space Andrius Kubilius in Brussels on Wednesday, as Seoul seeks to strengthen arms industry ties with Europe amid the continent's rearmament push. During the t

South Korea and the United States will keep their Nuclear Consultative Group (NCG) running under the administration of US President Donald Trump despite speculation it could be scrapped, with its next meeting set to take place as early as June, an official said Wednesday. The NCG was launched by former South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol and former US President Joe Biden following their April 2023 summit to strengthen the US "extended deterrence" commitment to defending its ally South Korea wit

The South Korean Army's sniper team came out on top of all international participants, excluding the US, at the 2025 International Sniper Competition, South Korean Army officials said Wednesday. The event, hosted by the US Army and held from April 4-10 at the US Army Sniper School at Fort Moore, Georgia, had 35 teams competing from 9 countries, including the United States, Germany, Brazil, and the United Kingdom. Representing South Korea, the only Asian nation invited to the annual competition f

South Korea's arms procurement agency said Wednesday it has taken part in a defense exhibition in Iraq and held talks with Iraqi military officials over exports of the South's Surion helicopters. Officials from the Defense Acquisition Program Administration visited the Middle Eastern country for the International Defense Exhibition from Saturday through Tuesday to promote South Korean weapons systems, according to the agency. In a meeting with Iraq's Defense Minister Thabet Mohammed Al-Abbasi, D

South Korea’s military launched its fourth domestically developed spy satellite on Tuesday, advancing efforts to build a constellation of reconnaissance satellites aimed at enhancing the nation’s capability to monitor North Korea and detect signs of potential provocations in real time. The satellite lifted off at 9:48 a.m. from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in Florida aboard a Falcon 9 rocket operated by US space company SpaceX. It successfully separated from the launch vehicle approximatel

Two Chinese nationals were caught filming near a US military facility in Pyeongtaek on Monday, a month after two other Chinese citizens were found photographing aircraft near an air base in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province. The security investigation division of the Gyeonggi Nambu Provincial Police Agency said it booked the two without detention on suspicion of violating the Military Facility Protection Act. The suspects took unauthorized photographs near Osan Air Base, also known as K-55, around 9 a.m.