Tag: ROK Army

Transgender Soldier Wants to Continue to Serve in the ROK Military

| January 23, 2020

This whole situation makes me wonder if the only reason Byun enlisted was to be activist like this:

Byun Hee-soo, a transgender Army staff sergeant, speaks during a press conference in Seoul on Jan. 22, 2020, after a military panel decides to discharge her. (Yonhap)

South Korea’s first transgender soldier on Wednesday pleaded to be allowed to continue to serve after the military decided to discharge her. 

Byun Hee-soo, an Army staff sergeant in her 20s, voluntarily enlisted as a man in 2017 and underwent sex reassignment surgery in November last year. A military panel decided not to allow the noncommissioned officer to stay in the Army. 

Right after the decision was announced, Byun came out in public and held an emotional press conference before TV cameras, requesting equal treatment for sexual minorities and the right to complete the military service.

“I hope that sexual minorities in the military can carry out their duties without discrimination and I want to set a good precedent in this kind of case and want to add power to make that happen,” she said while wearing a military uniform.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Moon Administration Wants to Reduce ROK Army By 100,000 Troops By 2022

| October 14, 2019

There could be a steep drop in the number of ROK Army soldiers in the coming years:

The Korean Air Force shared a photo Friday of soldiers conducting helicopter hoist training in Goesan County, North Chungcheong. [YONHAP]

The Army said Friday it plans to reduce the number of troops by around 100,000 over the next three years in the face of a shrinking population and as part of reform initiatives to create a smaller, smarter military.

By 2022, the number of soldiers will be slashed to about 365,000 from the current level of around 464,000, according to an Army report presented to the National Assembly.

This is in line with defense reforms under which the government seeks to reduce the number of troops to cope with fewer potential draftees and shorter mandatory service terms for conscripts.

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

South Korea Announces It Has Successfully Developed A New Anti-Aircraft Gun

| June 7, 2019

In a fight with North Korea this gun will probably see more action supporting ground troops than shooting down aircraft:

South Korea successfully developed a 30-mm wheel-type anti-aircraft gun system that has a longer range and better mobility than the previous model, the arms procurement agency said Wednesday.
Under the 55-billion won (US$46.58 million) project launched in June, 2015, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) and Hanwha Defense Co. developed the anti-aircraft gun wheeled vehicle system, and final tests and evaluations proved that it met all the military requirements. 
As a system designed to ward off low-altitude attacks by enemy aircraft, the new weapon has an effective range of 3 kilometers, some 1.6 times longer than the 20mm Vulcan anti-aircraft guns, and its latest targeting systems allow it to have automatic tracking and self-targeting capabilities, according to the DAPA.
The adoption of the wheeled platform also enabled it to provide active mobile and localized support for troops, it added.

Yonhap

South Korea Plans to Build Animal Robots

| May 13, 2019

I doubt the Kim regime is too concerned about fighting animal robots:

– South Korea will rev up efforts to develop military robots mimicking animals and other creatures to better brace for evolving future battlefields, the arms procurement agency said Sunday.
In its latest document that outlines blueprints for key defense technologies development, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) rolled out its plan to actively apply the so-called biomimetics to the military’s future weapons systems.
If it proceeds as planned, several kinds of biobots, which replicate humans and insects, are expected to be deployed as early as 2024, DAPA said, adding that robots mimicking birds, snakes and other marine species could be part of the country’s military forces afterwards.
“Biometric robots will be a game changer in future warfare, and related technologies are expected to bring about great ripple effects throughout the defense industry,” agency spokesman Park Jeong-eun said, adding that their roles will range from search and rescue operations to reconnaissance.

Yonhap