[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Why Has the Number of Chinese Visiting Military Personnel Increased?

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] Each time the Ministry of National Defense announces the number of soldiers quarantined in preparation for the 'Novel Coronavirus Infection (Wuhan Pneumonia),' the number of soldiers who visited China also increases, raising concerns that the detailed status of entry and exit is insufficiently tracked.

As of 7 a.m. on the 28th, the Ministry of National Defense reported that about 100 soldiers were quarantined to prevent the spread of the novel coronavirus within the military. At the regular briefing at 10:30 a.m. that day, the Ministry announced that a total of 92 soldiers were quarantined, including 54 officers and 38 enlisted personnel. However, a text message distributed to reporters at 6 p.m. stated that the number of quarantined soldiers had increased again to 124.

The number of military personnel who visited China also continued to rise. The Ministry of National Defense reported 150 at 10:30 a.m. on the 28th, but the number increased to 190 by 6 p.m.

Regarding this, a Ministry of National Defense official said, "The increase in personnel announced at 6 p.m. was due to the early return of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces Athletic Corps, which was conducting training in China."

The Sangju Sangmu professional football team headed to Meizhou, China, on the 20th for a friendly tournament and training camp. The professional football team originally planned to return around the 6th of next month after completing the training camp, but it was reported that they decided to return as soon as possible due to the 'Wuhan Pneumonia' situation.

Based on the timeline, the Ministry of National Defense was apparently unaware of the Armed Forces Athletic Corps' visit to China until announcing the number of soldiers who visited China at 10:30 a.m. Inside and outside the military, there are criticisms that they did not know about a group visit, not just individual visits. There are also questions about whether many soldiers who had already visited China engaged in normal activities within their units before being quarantined.

Military personnel must report to their units if they plan to visit overseas for leave or business trips. The criticism arises because if they had acted swiftly, the number of visitors to China should have been identified before the Lunar New Year holiday. The Ministry of National Defense formed a task force after the government raised the infectious disease crisis level from 'caution' to 'alert' and held its first meeting around 8 p.m. on the 27th, during the Lunar New Year holiday period.

Currently, there are no known infections within the military, and the remaining personnel have not developed symptoms after the monitoring and observation period. Ministry of National Defense spokesperson Choi Hyun-soo said, "We are measuring the temperature of all personnel returning to units or entering from outside," adding, "If a patient occurs, we plan to control soldiers' movements such as outings, overnight stays, and events." The military is not currently imposing a complete ban on soldiers' leave, outings, or overnight stays.

A military official said, "The criteria for personnel identification must consider the incubation period of the novel coronavirus, which the Ministry of National Defense cannot unilaterally decide. Also, since measures must be prepared to identify the number of visitors to China by each unit, it inevitably takes time."