Author: GIKorea

Hopefully everyone in South Korea takes this typhoon seriously, prepares, and stays in doors during its arrival. Likewise the Yoon administration has got to be fully engaged with relief efforts or the political opposition and media will “Katrina” him just months into his Presidency:

Typhoon Hinnamnor is forecast to reach waters off Jeju Island this week as a “super strong” typhoon, the strongest on a four-tier scale, the state weather agency said Sunday.

According to the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA), the typhoon, the 11th this year, is expected to arrive 460 kilometers south-southwest of the southern island of Jeju around 9 a.m. Monday, with an atmospheric pressure of 920 hectopascals at its center and a maximum wind speed of 54 meters per second.

Typhoons are classified into four categories, from medium to strong, very strong and super strong.

Super strong refers to typhoons with a maximum wind speed of at least 54 meters per second.

By 9 p.m. Monday, Typhoon Hinnamnor is forecast to reach waters 180 km south-southwest of Jeju as a “very strong” typhoon before moving further north to 20 km north-northwest of the southeastern port city of Busan by 9 a.m. Tuesday, according to the KMA.

The typhoon’s strength when it reaches Busan is forecast to weaken to “strong,” with an atmospheric pressure of 950 hectopascals at its center and a maximum wind speed of 43 meters per second, making it the strongest typhoon ever to make landfall in South Korea.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

North Korea was surprisingly quiet during the recent Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise, but I don’t expect them to be quiet for much longer and apparently neither does the Pentagon:

The USS Ronald Reagan (CVN-76), a forward-deployed aircraft carrier, will arrive at the South Korean port city of Busan later this month amid signs of a possible nuclear test by North Korea, government sources said Friday.

According to the sources, Seoul and Washington are discussing plans to conduct bilateral exercises on the East Sea after the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier arrives in Busan.

The Reagan is expected to stay in the country for about a week to participate in the military drill with the South Korean Navy, as well as friendly and goodwill events.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Please leave anything you want to discuss in the comments section.

My opinion has always been that there has been plenty of Korean celebrities that have completed their mandatory military service. BTS should be expected to do the same thing:

South Korea may conduct a public survey to help determine whether to grant exemptions to mandatory military service to members of the K-pop boyband BTS, officials said Wednesday.

The issue of active military service for the band’s seven members has been a hot-button topic in South Korea because its oldest member, Jin, faces enlistment in December, when he turns 30.

Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup told lawmakers that he ordered officials to implement a survey quickly. He said his ministry will also look into various other factors such as BTS’s economic impact, the importance of military service and overall national interest.

After his comments created a stir, his ministry clarified in a statement that Lee ordered officials to examine whether such a survey is needed, rather than launch it immediately.

Associated Press

You can read more at the link.

For people in the southern part of the Korean peninsula a massive storm is heading their way. Hopefully everyone takes proper precautions:

A super strong typhoon is approaching the Korean Peninsula, and southern parts of the country, including Jeju Island, may come under its direct influence early next week, the state weather agency said Thursday.

Typhoon Hinnamnor is believed to have passed over the sea 550 kilometers southeast of Taipei, the Korea Meteorological Administration (KMA) said.

The 11th typhoon of this year is forecast to start moving northward Friday and reach the sea 430 km south-southwest of Seogwipo on Jeju Island on Monday afternoon. 

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This live fire is being executed as part of the ongoing Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise:

South Korea and the United States staged a large-scale combined live-fire exercise near the inter-Korean border Wednesday, in a vivid display of the allies’ military might amid North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.

A centerpiece of the Combined Joint Fires Coordination Exercise (CJFCX) took place in Rodriguez Live Fire Complex in Pocheon, about 30 kilometers south of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), involving high-morale troops, battle tanks, mortars, howitzers and warplanes to boot.

Yonhap News Agency and three other news outlets were given access to observe the four-day exercise set to run through Thursday, as the allies are pushing to beef up combined drills amid concerns about possible North Korean provocations like a nuclear test.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.