박보람
| 2026-08-05 15:32:35
(ATTN: RECASTS headline; UPDATES paras 1-7, 15-19)
SEOUL, Aug. 5 (Yonhap) -- President Lee Jae Myung said Wednesday the Army academy has been behind all military coups in South Korea, while remaining largely unaccountable, calling for the swift integration of military academies to reduce the risk of another coup.
The president made the remarks while receiving policy briefings from the foreign, unification and defense ministries, as the government seeks to unify the academies of the Army, Navy and Air Force into a single institution.
Lee pointed out that graduates from the Korea Military Academy had been behind all of the country's military coups, but that the academy had not been held to account so far.
The president, in particular, noted the risk of another coup by Army elites, saying, "Can't they do it again in the future?"
"Is it acceptable to separate military branches and nurture them separately when one branch comes to overwhelmingly dominate the military, stages a coup that shakes the country and still remains unaccountable?" he said, adding that integrating the military academies could reduce the possibility.
Lee's remarks came as the defense ministry is seeking to establish an integrated military academy, a move that followed former President Yoon Suk Yeol's 2024 martial law declaration, which involved then Defense Minister Kim Yong-hyun, a Korea Military Academy graduate.
During the session, the president also emphasized the importance of maintaining peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula amid upheaval in the international order, noting that the move also helps support the national economy.
"It's an era of upheaval in the international order. What is most important (now) is peace and stability on the Korean Peninsula," Lee said ahead of receiving policy briefings from the foreign, unification and defense ministries.
"We have experienced in the recent past what happens when peace is compromised," the president said, adding no amount of emphasis on peace and stability is excessive.
"Peace is food. Peace is the economy," he said, suggesting that maintaining peace also helps support economic stability.
The president also expressed regret that security and diplomatic issues have become fodder for partisan wrangling in South Korea, pledging to deliver tangible results by taking necessary action rather than raising his voice as the person with the authority and responsibility.
Lee also instructed the unification ministry to continue the government's policy of promoting peace and coexistence with North Korea despite Pyongyang's continued unresponsiveness to Seoul's repeated overtures for engagement.
"It must feel like a cry that goes unanswered," Lee said,
"It would be difficult to improve (relations) easily after spending a long time confronting and neglecting each other," the president said, adding that despite the situation, "the policy of pursuing peace and coexistence should continue."
During the briefing session, Lee also zeroed in on delays in reclaiming land that previously housed United States Forces Korea (USFK) facilities, even after U.S. troops relocated to Pyeongtaek, some 60 kilometers south of Seoul.
"We spent more than 10 trillion won (US$7 billion) to build the Pyeongtaek base," the president said.
"It is a real problem that (land used for former U.S. military bases) is not being returned for one reason or another, and that even after it is returned, it is effectively unusable because of various restrictions," he said.
Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said the USFK has been passive on the issue and that Seoul is urging it to make progress.
Under a 2004 agreement with Seoul, the USFK relocated its forces to the newly built Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek by 2018, but some land it previously used has yet to be returned to the South Korean government, including sites north of Seoul.
(END)
[ⓒ K-VIBE. 무단전재-재배포 금지]