Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop's Emergency COVID-19 Inspection in the Military on the 10th

Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop is attending the full meeting of the National Defense Committee held at the National Assembly on the 1st and is reporting on his duties. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The Ministry of National Defense is preparing emergency measures as the number of COVID-19 cases within the military continues to rise. There are concerns that the upcoming 'Ulchi Freedom Shield' (UFS) exercise scheduled for later this month could be disrupted.

According to government officials on the 8th, Defense Minister Lee Jong-seop will conduct an emergency inspection on the afternoon of the 10th at the Ministry of National Defense in response to the resurgence of COVID-19 within the military. Key commanders, including the chiefs of each military branch, the Air Force Operations Commander, and the Navy Operations Commander, will gather to assess the COVID-19 situation. On the 7th, 1,243 new COVID-19 cases were reported within the military, and the spread has not yet slowed.

The Republic of Korea and the United States have decided to conduct counterattack training against North Korea during the joint military exercises scheduled for late this month. During the four-day crisis management exercise, initial responses to North Korean provocations and joint ROK-US crisis management will be addressed. The first phase of the exercise, lasting five days, will focus on transitioning to wartime posture, repelling North Korean attacks, and defending the Seoul metropolitan area. The second phase, lasting four days, will train counteroffensive operations following a counterattack to secure safety in the Seoul metropolitan area.

Eleven outdoor maneuver exercises, including the Combined Arms Live-Fire Exercise, Combined Attack Helicopter Firing Exercise, and Combined Maritime Patrol Operations Exercise, will resume. To facilitate the transfer of wartime operational control, an evaluation of the Future Combined Forces Command’s Full Operational Capability (FOC) will be conducted under the command of a four-star general from the Republic of Korea Armed Forces.

Additionally, exercises simulating real-world scenarios such as the discovery of improvised nuclear explosive devices, semiconductor factory fires, and banking network outages will be conducted. Actual training exercises (FTX) will be carried out concurrently, including airport terror response, counter-drone attacks on civilian and military facilities, and recovery from damage to multi-use facilities.