▲ Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back (L) speaks during a parliamentary session at the National Assembly in western Seoul on Aug. 31, 2026. (Yonhap)

SEOUL, Aug. 31 (Yonhap) -- Outgoing Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back expressed Monday his "mixed" feelings about his more than yearlong tenure as the country's first civilian defense chief, as he is stepping down following a Cabinet reshuffle.

Ahn, a five-term veteran lawmaker in the liberal bloc, was named defense minister weeks after President Lee Jae Myung took office in June last year, becoming the country's first defense chief with a civilian background in over six decades.

Cheong Wa Dae announced Sunday that Lee nominated retired Army Gen. Kang Shin-chul, former deputy commander of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, as new defense minister.

"As the first civilian defense minister, I think I have both my share of achievements and shortcomings," Ahn told lawmakers at the National Assembly.

"I truly feel heavyhearted, and I can hardly hold back how I feel," he said.

Since assuming his post, Ahn has spearheaded a string of high-stakes and politically sensitive tasks, including Seoul's push to retake wartime operational control from the United States and its drive for merging three military academies into a single institution.

Notably, Ahn has recently faced strong pushback over the military academy consolidation plan, along with the scrutiny over his obscure position on his military service records.

Ahn has been under scrutiny after renewed allegations that he went absent without leave and served time in a military detention facility during his conscription period in the early 1980s.

The service period for a short-term conscript that Ahn had served at the time was 14 months, but Ahn served a total of 22 months. Civic groups and the opposition party have questioned the eight-month discrepancy, a claim Ahn has denied as groundless, saying it was an administrative error.

Ahn has said he was called back after the initial discharge in early 1985 to complete roughly a month of makeup service over an investigation into a minor issue. Critics say he has not fully accounted for the eight-month gap.

"Once I step down, there will be proper (investigation) procedures, and I believe there will be a chance to explain the details to lawmakers," he said.

Ahn said he will continue to fulfill his duty as a legislator when he returns.

"I will hand over the baton to the minister nominee, who is far more capable and qualified than myself, and return as a lawmaker to fulfill my parliamentary duties, alongside my fellow lawmakers."

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