Tag: South Korea

I guess we will see if the North Koreans decide to escalate with some other test of their own in response:

South Korea conducted its first test launch of a hypersonic glide vehicle (HGV) on Thursday, Cheong Wa Dae said, in an apparent show of force against North Korea amid heightening inter-Korean tensions following a recent border land mine blast.

The test launch was carried out to verify core hypersonic technologies, such as flight trajectories and speed, as a game-changing strategic asset capable of launching surprise precision strikes against enemy targets, presidential spokesperson Kang Yu-jung said in a written briefing to the press. 

President Lee Jae Myung observed the launch in person, accompanied by Defense Minister Kang Shin-chul and other officials.

An HGV is a missile system that uses a booster to accelerate and ascend into the upper atmosphere before separating from the booster to glide at lower altitudes at hypersonic speeds. 

“The HGV successfully separated from its booster and seamlessly executed its planned flight path under hypersonic conditions,” she said. “This successful launch marks a major milestone in that preparations are complete to secure a new deterrent capable of striking critical targets across the theater of the Korean Peninsula.”

Lee’s office did not disclose the location of the test launch, but it reportedly took place on a barge inside a test center run by the Agency for Defense Development in Taean, about 130 kilometers south of Seoul.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

The major GI crimes in Japan always seem to happen on Okinawa. A 20-year old Marine has allegedly brutally murdered a 39 year old Japanese woman::

A U.S. service member was arrested on suspicion of murder and robbery after a Japanese woman’s body was discovered in a hotel in Okinawa, local officials said, describing the alleged killing as a “heinous” incident that prompted the Japanese government to lodge a protest with the United States.

Shinjiro Koizumi, the Japanese minister of defense, said a U.S. Marine lance corporal was arrested on Sunday after the woman’s body was found early on Saturday in Naha, the capital city of the Okinawa prefecture.

GMA

You can read more at the link.

One option being floated is expanding Korea’s anti-piracy mission in the Gulf of Aden:

“It is important that the Cheonghae Unit remains under independent Korean command and focuses on protecting Korean vessels and nationals, rather than becoming involved in combat operations,” said Cho Yong-geun, a professor of military studies at Kyungnam University.

He added that “if it is after the war ends, there would be no problem” with expanding the unit’s operations toward the strait.

The professor’s remarks came as Seoul faces continued pressure from U.S. President Donald Trump to contribute to efforts to secure freedom of navigation through the strait amid the months-long war with Iran.

Trump has repeatedly called on allies to play a greater role, with no allies so far committing to direct military involvement.

At a press conference Friday, Lee drew a clear line at combat involvement, saying Korea would not send troops to “participate or intervene in the war,” while leaving room for other military activities to protect Korean vessels, crude oil transportation routes and citizens.

You can read more over at the Korea Times. So basically this professor is advocating for appearing to do something to help the U.S. without actually doing anything.

Now if the Korean Navy protects international shipping from Houthi attacks then that would be a significant contribution. I guess we will see what happens.

Here is what is being section what Korea will do with any possible deployment to the Middle East:

Local news reports have speculated on the potential list of military assets for deployment, including the P-8A maritime patrol aircraft, a logistics support ship and explosive ordnance disposal teams — mainly non-combat assets.

However, the naval logistics support vessel has reportedly been ruled out as its operation would require dispatching more than 100 sailors.

The assessment team likely visited the Al Dhafra Air Base in Abu Dhabi, home to a primary U.S. military installation in the UAE, to check operational conditions for the potential P-8A deployment.

Sending an assessment team to a candidate deployment site is part of the required procedures under the defense ministry’s directives on overseas military deployment. Upon return, the team is obliged to report the result of the mission to the National Security Council.

The defense ministry, however, has stressed that the team’s dispatch does not mean the deployment will follow, saying that its purpose was strictly to assess the security environment and safety conditions near the strait.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I still think counter-drone and missile defense in support of UAE is play here.

The ruling party and the Korean public do not like Trump which makes it politically difficult to do this deployment in support of Trump. Instead frame it as a request for defensive assistance from the UAE, a long time strategic partner of the ROK. President Lee should not even bring Trump’s name up when discussing this deployment in order to sell it to the Korean public.

If anything I would hope these threats would make the ROK government more determined to deploy assets to the Middle East to show they are not easily intimidated by the Thugs of Tehran:

Complicating Seoul’s deliberations on the issue is Iran’s stern warning against any potential military dispatch to the strait.

“Any other country maintaining a military presence or participating in operations in the Persian Gulf and the Strait of Hormuz can only be regarded as directly supporting the perpetrators of the aggression, and it will lead to serious consequences,” Esmaeil Baqaei, spokesperson for Iran’s foreign ministry, wrote on X on Monday.

His social media post also carried a photo with a Korean-language message: “A dangerous choice comes with consequences.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but I still think deploying anti-drone and missile defense forces to help defend the UAE is a strategy the ROK should pursue. As the Iranian regime becomes more economically desperate they are going to lash out and attack regional energy infrastructure which South Korea can help UAE defend against.

It will be interesting to see how long it takes South Korea to make a decision on this deployment:

South Korea has dispatched an investigation team to assess the situation in the conflict-stricken Strait of Hormuz, the defense ministry said Tuesday, amid repeated calls from Washington for Seoul to assist its war efforts against Iran.

The team departed for the United Arab Emirates (UAE) over the weekend and is expected to return as early as this week. The examination results will be reported to the National Security Council, the ministry added.

“It is aimed at assessing the state of affairs and the security situation in the strait,” a ministry official explained, stressing that the dispatch “was not decided on the premise of military deployment.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.