Park Junghun, Who Resisted Pressure in Corporal Chae Case, Promoted to Brigadier General... Military Announces General Officer Appointments

Colonel Park Junghun, head of the Marine Corps Investigation Team who resisted external pressure during the investigation into the death of Corporal Chae, has been promoted to brigadier general. He is scheduled to be appointed as Acting Director of the Defense Investigation Headquarters.

Brigadier General Park Junghun (Acting Director of the Defense Investigation Headquarters). Photo by Yonhap News Agency

Colonel Kim Moonsang, who served as Chief of Operations at the Capital Defense Command during the 12·3 Martial Law Incident and refused illegal and unjust orders, such as withholding approval for Special Forces helicopter flights, has also been promoted and will serve as Director of Civil-Military Operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

On January 9, the government announced promotions for general officers at the rank of major general and below. A Ministry of National Defense official explained, "The selection focused on identifying outstanding individuals who can build a military filled with a strong sense of duty, faithfully performing their core responsibilities as soldiers based on loyalty to the Constitution and the people."

A total of 41 officers were promoted to major general and appointed to key combat unit commander and staff positions at each military headquarters: 27 from the Army, including Brigadier General Park Minyoung; 7 from the Navy, including Brigadier General Ko Seungbeom; 1 from the Marine Corps, Brigadier General Park Seongsun; and 6 from the Air Force, including Brigadier General Kim Yongjae.

Major General Ye Mincheol, from the Army Engineer branch, who has served exclusively as an infantry, artillery, armor, and intelligence officer for decades, is set to be appointed as a division commander. In addition, Major General Kim Heonjung, a former Air Force fighter jet backseat pilot, became the first backseat mission specialist since the 1990s to be promoted to major general, performing roles such as fighter armament, navigation, and flight. Marine Corps Major General Park Seongsun, from the armor branch, will be the first in his field to be appointed as a division commander and will take on key operational duties.

Among those promoted to brigadier general, in addition to Brigadier General Park and Brigadier General Kim, Colonel Lee Chunghui, who started as a non-commissioned officer and became an officer through the warrant officer system, was also promoted. This marks the first time since the system was introduced in 1996 that a warrant officer-commissioned officer has reached the rank of brigadier general. In addition, 77 officers were promoted to brigadier general: 53 Army colonels, including Min Gyudeok; 10 Navy colonels, including Park Gilseon; 3 Marine Corps colonels, including Hyun Usik; and 11 Air Force colonels, including Kim Taehyun.

The proportion of non-Korea Military Academy graduates among those promoted to Army major general rose sharply to 41%, compared to 20% in the previous round of promotions. Among Army brigadier generals, the proportion increased from 25% to 43%, and among Air Force brigadier generals, the proportion of non-pilot branches rose from 25% to 45%.

For female officers, five were selected-the largest number since the first female general promotion in 2002-including one major general and four brigadier generals.

A Ministry of National Defense official stated, "We considered the ability to proactively defend the Korean Peninsula and achieve robust military readiness and future combat power development goals in the face of North Korea's nuclear missile threats and an unstable international security environment." The official added, "We selected talent from diverse backgrounds, branches, and specialties without restriction, in order to focus on rebuilding the military as a force that works for the people."