Author: GIKorea

It is pretty amazing that the former ROK Marine Corps commandant is being investigated for telling the National Assembly that former President Yoon did not go into a rage when hearing of the death of a Marine. However, a Marine investigator is claiming that the General told him that Yoon did go into a rage:

A Seoul court on Tuesday rejected an arrest warrant for former Marine Corps Commandant Kim Kye-hwan over allegations of giving false testimony in connection with a probe into the death of a young Marine in 2023.

The Seoul Central District Court said it rejected the warrant requested by a special counsel team investigating Kim, citing the lack of risk of flight or evidence tampering.

The retired three-star general is suspected of being involved in the alleged interference in the military probe of the death of Cpl. Chae Su-geun, who died while searching for torrential rain victims in July 2023 without safety equipment, such as a life jacket.

The special counsel team has focused on allegations that former President Yoon Suk Yeol burst into a rage during a meeting of senior presidential officials in July 2023, after being briefed on the results of the probe that found a senior Marine commander responsible for Chae’s death.

Kim had consistently denied telling the top Marine investigator in charge of the initial probe of the episode about Yoon. During a court hearing earlier in the day, however, he acknowledged for the first time that he had heard about Yoon’s alleged outburst of anger.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

When the martial law decree happened I said it was foolish of Yoon to think that ROK Soldiers would want to be involved in anything that could devolve into a modern day Gwangju Uprising like event. That is exactly what happened as Soldiers went and ate ramen noodles at local convenience stores instead of following orders. Who would imagine that going to eat ramen noodles could lead to a promotion for them:

South Korean soldiers who refused to obey unlawful orders during former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s martial law attempt last year could receive early promotions, according to the Ministry of National Defense. The military last week launched a closer look at the actions of soldiers on duty after Yoon’s short-lived martial law decree late Dec. 3 and early Dec. 4, a Defense Ministry spokesman said Friday at a news conference in Seoul.

Roughly 200 soldiers — many of them from special forces units — were deployed to the National Assembly building in the capital after Yoon’s edict that night. Some troops blocked the building’s entrance as lawmakers attempted to convene and vote to overturn Yoon’s order. Yoon, who faces trial on charges of insurrection and abuse of authority, has denied deploying troops to prevent lawmakers from reversing the martial law. His attorneys have said the troops were deployed as a precautionary measure and to instill order. Service members who are found to have “performed their duties as soldiers” without following “improper orders” could receive commendations, the spokesman said.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

This is a bizarre murder that happened recently in Incheon:

A man shot and killed his son with a homemade gun during a birthday party he threw for his father, police said Monday.

The 63-year-old shooter was detained without a warrant early Monday after police were alerted to a shooting at an apartment in Incheon, west of Seoul, at 9:31 p.m. Sunday.

The man is suspected of firing two shots at his son in his 30s during the party, which was also attended by his daughter-in-law, his two grandchildren and friends, police said. The motive behind the suspect’s shooting was not known.

The gun was in pipe-form and the bullets hit the son’s chest. He was moved to a hospital but later pronounced dead.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

A MAGA like movement is growing in Japan which became more evident after their recent upper house election that saw the ruling LDP lose majorities in both houses for the first time since 1955:

Japan’s Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba walks after addressing the media at the vote counting center in the Liberal Democratic Party headquarters in Tokyo on Sunday. AFP-Yonhap

Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba’s ruling coalition failed Monday to secure a majority in the 248-seat upper house in a crucial parliamentary election, NHK public television said.

Ishiba’s Liberal Democratic Party and its junior coalition partner Komeito needed to win 50 seats on top of the 75 seats they already have to retain their majority. With just one more seat to be decided, the coalition had 47 seats.

The loss is another blow to Ishiba’s coalition, making it a minority in both houses following its October defeat in the lower house election, and worsening Japan’s political instability. It was the first time the LDP has lost a majority in both houses of parliament since the party’s foundation in 1955.

Korea Herald

It looks like if Prime Minister Ishiba wants to create a new coalition he is going to have to change government policy to address the concerns of the Sanseito party which saw massive gains in this election:

The emerging populist party Sanseito stands out with the toughest anti-foreigner stance, with its “Japanese First” platform that proposes a new agency to handle policies related to foreigners. The party’s populist platform also includes anti-vaccine, anti-globalism and favors traditional gender roles.

Conservative opposition groups, especially the DPP and Sanseito, gained significant ground at the Liberal Democrats’ expense, while the centrist top opposition CDPJ was sluggish. The DPP quadrupled to 17 seats from four, according to interim results reported by Japanese media. Sanseito surged to 14 from just one.

You can read more at the link, but of course the media is claiming that Sanseito is xenophobic for wanting to limit immigration to protect Japanese culture.

The Dokdo defense drill may have been low key this year, but at some point when the Lee administration needs to provoke anti-Japanese sentiment to obscure some domestic political issue, expect some kind of Dokdo crisis. Even a conservative president has used this tactic. Anyone remember when President Lee Myung-bak tried to pass an information sharing deal with Japan a few years ago and it caused a public outcry and he had to cancel the deal?  It was so bad he had to fly to Dokdo and speak out against Japan to prove he was not a Japanese traitor:

 South Korea conducted regular defense drills near its easternmost islets of Dokdo on Thursday, a military official said, in what marked the first such exercise held under the Lee Jae Myung government.

“The Navy and the Coast Guard conducted the drills in the East Sea,” the official said, stressing they are part of regular drills aimed at defending South Korea’s territory and its people’s properties.

In a similar scope compared with the biannual drills conducted last year, the defense drills did not involve the Marine Corps.

Some of the drills in the past involved fighter jets and landing maneuvers on the islets, but they have taken place in a relatively low-key approach recently.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This interview with a U.S. diplomat really just affirms everything the Trump administration has been asking other allies to do, which is increase defense spending:

 A U.S. diplomat on Friday reaffirmed the United States’ “ironclad” security commitment to South Korea, but called on the Asian ally to make the “highest-level” efforts to strengthen its own defense capabilities.

In an interview with Yonhap News Agency, State Department deputy spokesperson Mignon Houston made the remarks amid expectations that U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration might request South Korea to bolster its defense spending and military capabilities as it prioritizes deterring threats from an assertive China.

Houston also pointed out that addressing North Korea’s nuclear quandary remains a “priority” issue that Washington has “not taken our eyes off of,” while underscoring that the Trump administration is looking forward to working “very closely” with the government of new South Korean President Lee Jae Myung.

“South Korea is a strong and capable partner. President (Trump) believes that South Korea has the ability to ensure at the highest level that their defense capabilities are refined and strong. This is something we know we need,” she said.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.