Reduce 46 Generals by Next Year

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter]The military authorities have reduced 46 out of the 76 general officer positions targeted for reduction, and the Army's service period will be shortened to 18 months by the end of next year as planned.

The Ministry of National Defense announced on the 16th that it held the '2020 Defense Reform 2.0 and Smart Defense Innovation Progress Review Meeting' chaired by Minister Seo Wook, reporting these details.

Regarding the adjustment plan for general officer positions, the Ministry of National Defense reported that 46 positions out of the 76 targeted for reduction have been cut by this year. The service period for soldiers has been shortened by 62 days as of the previous day, and it is scheduled to be completed at 18 months for the Army by December next year.

To guarantee soldiers' human rights, the detention system has been replaced with a military discipline education system, and soldiers' pay will be increased from 540,900 KRW per month for a sergeant to 608,500 KRW next year. Compensation for reservist mobilization training has been raised by 33.3%, from 32,000 KRW in 2019 to 42,000 KRW this year, and will increase to 47,000 KRW next year. The proportion of female soldiers also increased by 0.6 percentage points from last year to 7.4%, achieving the target.

The Army has reduced troops and units this year, including the disbandment of the 2nd and 30th Divisions, and is reorganizing unit structures from corps to battalion levels into operation- and combat-centered units by 2025, considering the characteristics of each unit.

The Ministry of National Defense explained, "Corps will optimize unit structures such as armored, artillery, intelligence, and logistics support, and enhance corps-centered operational capabilities by augmenting advanced weapon systems." It added, "Divisions will optimize unit structures including intelligence, tanks, air defense, and chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) units, and replace outdated weapons and equipment." It also stated, "Infantry and artillery regiments have been renamed as brigades," and "Brigades are being reorganized to include combat support and combat service support units such as intelligence, firepower, mobility, and logistics support to enable combined arms operations."

The Ministry of National Defense emphasized, "Next year, to achieve the substantial completion of reforms within the current administration's term, we will strengthen field-centered efforts to ensure definite outcomes of Defense Reform 2.0."

In the military structure sector, about 270 units at battalion level and above will be reorganized to guarantee mission completeness, with particular focus on the integrated reorganization of the 3rd and 8th Corps. In the defense operations and military culture sector, the plan is to reduce active-duty personnel by about 25,000, reinforce reserve forces, and further expand the proportion of female soldiers.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.