Defense chief vows to turn Marine Corps into air-ground combined armed forces

▲ Marine reserves demand Marine Corps chief, Kim Kye-hwan, reveal the truth behind an influence-peddling case during a rally held in front of Militopia Hotel in Seongnam, south of Seoul, on Jan. 16, 2024. (Yonhap)

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Defense chief vows to turn Marine Corps into air-ground combined armed forces

SEOUL, Jan. 16 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's defense chief said Tuesday the military will develop the Marine Corps into an armed forces that can carry out joint operations with amphibious and air assets to better deter North Korea's threats.

During a policy briefing session, Defense Minister Shin Won-sik complimented the Marines for conducting live-fire drills on the front-line islands of Yeonpyeong and Baengnyeong on Jan. 5, hours after North Korea fired about 200 rounds of artillery shells into the Yellow Sea.

It marked the South Korean military's first live-fire drills near the western maritime border in six years and five months, which were previously banned under a 2018 inter-Korean military agreement signed to prevent accidental clashes.

"Our military will develop the Marine Corps into a world-class national strategic force. ... We will evolve the Marines' structure into an air-ground force that combines amphibious and airborne assets," Shin said during the session for Marine reserves held at a hotel in Seongnam, just south of Seoul.

In 2021, the Marine Aircraft Group was launched, and the Marineone amphibious helicopter, a variant of the homegrown utility Surion helicopter, went into service last year to enhance its joint operational capability.

Meanwhile, a group of Marine reserves held a rally in front of the hotel to demand the commander of the Marine Corps., Kim Kye-hwan, reveal the truth behind an influence-peddling case related to the death of a young Marine in July 2023.

In October, Col. Park Jung-hun, the Marine's former top investigator, was indicted on charges of insubordination and defamation of his superior after he handed over the probe findings regarding the death of Cpl. Chae Su-geun to the civilian police in August despite then Defense Minister Lee Jong-sup's order for him to wait for more legal deliberations.

Park has denied the allegations and called for a thorough probe into whether there was influence peddling behind the case.

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