This is the third of five interviews with prominent US scholars on an upcoming South Korea-US summit and the alliance. -- Ed.With the first summit between Presidents Moon Jae-in and Donald Trump just around the corner, a renowned US expert painted a grim outlook for the meeting, saying there appears to be “little room for good news” and plenty of opportunities for the two leaders to create bad news. “A quiet outcome would be the best outcome from any summit between the US and South Korea in the

This is the second of five interviews with prominent US scholars on an upcoming South Korea-US summit and the alliance. -- Ed.When South Korean President Moon Jae-in meets his US counterpart Donald Trump in Washington this week, he should give the US leader full assurance on the parts of the US missile shield system already deployed in South Korea, a renowned security expert said. “At the summit, President Moon should emphasize his support for the two (THAAD) launchers already put into operation

This is the first installment of a five-part series of interviews with prominent US scholars on an upcoming South Korea-US summit and the alliance. -- Ed.Despite persistent controversy, South Korea’s halt of the deployment of a US anti-missile system will not undermine the decadesold alliance, and the sides may be able to forge a better deal on North Korea than expected during their upcoming summit, a renowned US security expert told The Korea Herald. Richard Betts, director of the Saltzman Inst

The US military in South Korea said Friday that the deployment process of the US advanced missile defense system in South Korea was “transparent,” in response to President Moon Jae-in’s claim that the process was mysteriously accelerated. In an email to The Korea Herald, the United States Forces Korea said that the US was fully transparent with the Korean government throughout the process, highlighting that Washington trusts South Korea’s official stance that the THAAD deployment was an alliance

When former Navy chief Song Young-moo was nominated as the first minister of defense for the Moon Jae-in administration last week, hopes were high that the retired admiral will bring sweeping reforms. In his first meeting with reporters after being nominated, Song laid out his vision with confidence. Describing the current security challenges as being paradigm-shifting, he pledged to “rebuild” the military by eradicating dubious military contracts.But the path for Song’s appointment is likely to

A drone found earlier this month in South Korea was confirmed to have been sent by the North Korean military, possibly its intelligence agency, to spy on a US advanced missile defense system deployed in the South, Seoul’s military said Wednesday. According to its investigation, the drone was flown on May 2 from Kumgang County, a small village located about seven kilometers north of the two Koreas’ border, and traveled about 490 kilometers until it crashed on a mountain near Injae, Gangwon Provin

Before the tragic story of the American traveler to North Korea, Otto Warmbier, made headlines, not many in South Korea knew that several of their compatriots also face the same ordeal in the communist state. It was only last week that the South’s intelligence agency revealed that six South Koreans are currently detained in the North -- three pastors for engaging in religious activities and three for defecting from the North. Despite increased public attention on their safety, following Warmbier

With President Moon Jae-in and his US counterpart Donald Trump scheduled to hold their first summit at the end of this month, concerns are mounting over the allies’ contrasting views on how to resolve North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats. Such worries intensified after Moon’s special adviser Moon Chung-in said on his trip to Washington on Saturday that South Korea would consult with the US on whether to scale back the scope of annual joint military drills and US deployment of strategic asse

Under a cluster of pink and white coral reefs, a small orange fish emerged from among a group of sea anemones swinging their tentacles like a curtain designed to hide a magician preparing a spell for the spectators.“I’ve just seen Nemo,” said Lee Jong-hyun, 17-year-old high school student who finished scuba-diving with a group of seasoned Filipino divers. “See? It is exactly the same fish as I saw in the movie ‘Finding Nemo’.” Otherwise known as clownfish or anemonefish, Nemo is one of the most

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un seems to feel “extremely nervous” about the allies’ possible clandestine operation to eliminate him, South Korea’s intelligence agency told lawmakers Thursday. Due to concerns over potential airstrikes and assassination attempts, the young tyrant prefers to move at dawn and uses his subordinates’ cars, such as a Lexus car, not his own Mercedes-Benz 600, the National Intelligence Services told a closed-door parliamentary session, according to Rep. Lee Cheol-woo of

South Korea’s defense chief on Wednesday blamed North Korea for sending a drone to spy on the US advanced anti-missile system deployed here, describing it as an attempt to acquire ground targets for future airstrikes. Speaking to lawmakers at the National Assembly, Defense Minister Han Min-koo said the device, discovered last week by the South’s military, could carry biological weapons, warning against the possibility of a terrorist attack using drones. The remarks came a day after the South Kor

A purported North Korean drone was found to have taken pictures of the US advanced anti-missile system deployed in South Korea, Seoul’s military said Tuesday.The device, discovered on a mountain near the inter-Korean border Friday, carried more than 10 photos of a Terminal High Altitude Area Defense battery stationed in Seongju, North Gyeongsang Province, according to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.North Korean drone (JCS)“An analysis of the camera memory (of the drone) found pictures of Seongju

Under the previous Roh Moo-hyun administration, then-Vice Admiral Song Young-moo was tasked with leading the effort to overhaul the South Korean military by reducing its overreliance on the Army and Korea-US alliance. Song pushed this agenda until he retired as the chief of Naval Operation in 2008 after former President Lee Myung-bak took office. In 2012, Song served as a key security adviser for then-presidential candidate Moon Jae-in and worked alongside Moon until he won the presidential elec

With North Korea successfully test-firing most of its advanced missiles revealed during the regime’s massive military parade on April 15, there is only one missile type left for the regime to finish its ultimate goal: an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of reaching the United States. Since the military parade, the North has launched a series of newly-introduced ballistic missiles with extended ranges, advanced engines and multiple platforms. Among them are the intermediate-range Hawson

North Korea fired multiple anti-ship cruise missiles, South Korea’s military said Thursday, in an apparent display of advanced defense capacity against US military assets near the peninsula. 　Classified as short-range surface-to-ship cruise missiles, the projectiles lifted off from a launch site in the North’s coastal city of Wonsan and flew at least 200 kilometers with an apogee of 2 kilometers before falling into the East Sea, according to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff.The launch was seen as t

North Korea launched what appears to be multiple anti-ship cruise missiles into the East Sea, South Korea’s military said Thursday, in the regime’s latest effort to showcase advanced missile technology amid international sanctions and condemnation.The missiles lifted off from a launch site in the North’s coastal city of Wonsan and flew at least 200 kilometers, according to Seoul’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. The JCS classified the missiles as short-range surface-to-ship cruise missiles, but added fur

The further deployment of the controversial US missile defense system is on hold, Cheong Wa Dae confirmed Wednesday, while South Korea conducts a proper environmental impact assessment on the project site. “We won’t do anything to (the two launchers) already deployed, but when it comes to the additional deployment (of four launchers), we have to wait for the environmental impact assessment,” a senior Cheong Wa Dae official told reporters. The presidential office said a full-scale environmental i

With the Moon Jae-in administration seeking to elevate the status of the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs, expectations are high of a chance to reform an agency that has weathered the ups and downs of past governments according to their ideological inclinations. Cheong Wa Dae, the government and the ruling Democratic Party of Korea on Monday announced a plan to upgrade the agency to a ministerial-level organization as part of their plan to restructure the administration.Rep. Kim Tae-nye

SINGAPORE -- North Korea has been in the spotlight at the forum here of top defense officials from around the world, reflecting increased global concern about its military threats, officials here said Sunday.“The biggest characteristics of the session this time is that more attention has been paid to the North Korean nuclear and missile issue than in the previous ones,” said South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo. This photo provided by the Seoul defense ministry shows Han Min-koo, South Kore

 　Former Cheong Wa Dae chief security officer Kim Kwan-jin and incumbent Defense Minister Han Min-koo -- a once powerful pair in South Korea's military hierarcy -- are under investigation for not relaying highly sensitive information to the new administration. But the issue is only the beginning of trouble for the country’s military brass. 　President Moon looks set to push ahead with his ideas to reform the military and eradicate corruption -- in particular the dubious connections between the mi