[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Rising and Falling in October: The Army's 'General-level ☆eun'

Candidate Shin Won-sik's Confirmation Hearing Possible as Early as This Month
Generals Highly Interested in Next Month's Major Personnel Changes

As Shin Won-sik, the nominee for Minister of National Defense, begins preparations for the parliamentary confirmation hearing, attention is also turning to general-level personnel appointments next month. If the hearing schedule is set before the Chuseok holiday, the new minister is expected to smoothly proceed with establishing the general officer personnel plan.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In political circles, there is a view that they do not want to conduct a parliamentary audit targeting the outgoing Minister of National Defense, Lee Jong-seop, who has expressed his intention to resign, so the confirmation hearing could be held by the end of this month. If the general-level appointments next month also proceed smoothly, the new chiefs of staff will be able to participate in the National Assembly audit of the Army, Navy, and Air Force headquarters held at Gyeryongdae in Chungnam.

Inside and outside the military, names mentioned as candidates for personnel changes include Kim Seung-gyeom, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff who took office in July last year, and Army Chief of Staff Park Jeong-hwan, Navy Chief of Staff Lee Jong-ho, and Air Force Chief of Staff Jeong Sang-hwa, all appointed in May of the same year. Most four-star generals, such as the Deputy Commander of the Combined Forces Command, Commander of the Ground Operations Command, and Commander of the 2nd Operational Command, are also expected to be replaced.

Most General Officers at the Rank of General, Including Chairman of the Joint Chiefs and Chiefs of Staff of Each Service, Are Subject to Replacement

The position most frequently mentioned in replacement rumors is Kim Seung-gyeom, the Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, who is the highest-ranking officer in the military hierarchy. On December 16 last year, Kim visited the air defense positions of the 3rd Infantry Division in northern Gyeonggi Province and emphasized drone air defense readiness. Ten days later, he became the person held fully responsible for the failure of the drone shootdown operation. The military deployed fighter jets, attack helicopters, and light attack aircraft, firing over 100 rounds from the helicopter's 20mm cannon in an attempt to shoot down the drone, but failed. Consequently, opposition party members of the National Defense Committee in the National Assembly insist that Kim Seung-gyeom, who oversees air defense operations, must be held accountable.

The current Air Force Chief of Staff, Jeong Sang-hwa, is mentioned as the next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. General Jeong is from Gimcheon, Gyeongbuk Province, graduated from Paejae High School, and was commissioned as an Air Force second lieutenant (Air Force Academy Class 36) in 1988. The new Chief Jeong has over 3,100 flight hours primarily on the KF-16 fighter jet and was selected as the Air Force's top pilot in 1997 when he was a major, demonstrating outstanding flying skills. He has held key positions at the Joint Chiefs of Staff, including Commander of the 38th Fighter Wing, Director of Operations Planning, Director of Training and Exercises, Director of Strategic Planning and concurrently Head of the Nuclear and WMD Response Center, and Director of the Strategic Planning Headquarters. He is highly regarded for his deep understanding of combined operations between South Korea and the United States, which form the foundation of the ROK-US alliance, as well as joint operations overall.

For the next Army Chief of Staff, considering that the current chief is from the 44th class of the Korea Military Academy (KMA), attention is focused on the 45th class. There are two generals from the 45th class: Jeon Dong-jin, current Commander of the Ground Operations Command, and Ahn Byung-seok, current Deputy Commander of the ROK-US Combined Forces Command.

Rumors about replacing the Commander of the Ground Operations Command have been circulating since early this year. The Ground Operations Command is expected to play a role as the Combined Ground Forces Command, which will command and control combined ROK-US assets in connection with the future transfer of wartime operational control. However, there are evaluations that the current commander's health is not good. Since last year, there have been reports of health issues, and it is known that earlier this year, Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop and Chairman of the Joint Chiefs Kim Seung-gyeom directly discussed the worsening health condition of the Ground Operations Command commander.

Jeong Sang-hwa, Air Force Chief of Staff, Mentioned as Next Chairman of the Joint Chiefs... Fierce Competition Between KMA Classes 46 and 47 for Ground Operations Command Commander

There is expected to be intense competition among major generals from the 46th and 47th classes of the Korea Military Academy for the positions of next Commander of the Ground Operations Command and Deputy Commander of the Combined Forces Command.

The most frequently mentioned candidates are Kang Shin-cheol, current Director of Operations at the Joint Chiefs of Staff (Class 46), and Lee Gyu-jun, current Commander of the Army Training Command (Class 46). Also considered are Park An-su, Planning Director who organized this year's Armed Forces Day event in October, Eom Yong-jin, current Commander of the Logistics Command, and Hwang Yu-seong, current Commander of the Counterintelligence Command. Lee Doo-hee, who served as Deputy Commander of the Ground Operations Command until April and now commands the Missile Strategy Command, is also a candidate. Among the 47th class generals, four are eligible for promotion to general: Kim Gyu-ha, current Commander of the Capital Defense Command; Son Sik, current Commander of the Special Warfare Command; Kang Ho-pil, current Commander of the 1st Corps; and Kim Bong-su, current Commander of the 3rd Corps.

There is also interest in who will take command of the 2nd Operational Command, which oversees seven rear-area divisions. If KMA graduates monopolize the positions of Chief of Staff, Deputy Commander of the Combined Forces Command, and Commander of the Ground Operations Command, it is speculated that to balance origins and consolidate military morale, the position of Commander of the 2nd Operational Command may be assigned to a reserve officer or a graduate from the Korea Army Academy at Yeongcheon (3rd Military Academy).

High Possibility of Non-KMA Officer Being Assigned as Commander of the 2nd Operational Command

Considering that the current Commander of the 2nd Operational Command, General Shin Hee-hyun, is a reserve officer, there is a high likelihood that an officer from the 3rd Military Academy will be appointed. Candidates include Jang Gwang-seon, Commander of the 2nd Corps (3rd Military Academy Class 25), and Go Chang-jun, Commander of the Capital Corps (3rd Military Academy Class 26). Among reserve officers, Lee Sang-cheol, Chief of Staff of the Ground Operations Command (Reserve Officer Class 28), and Go Hyun-seok, Deputy Chief of Staff of the Army (Reserve Officer Class 29), are also mentioned.

Some suggest that since there has already been a 'security line overhaul' personnel change involving Im Jong-deuk, 2nd Deputy Director of the National Security Office, and Im Ki-hoon, Defense Secretary, followed by the replacement of Minister of National Defense Lee Jong-seop, the general officer personnel changes in the second half of the year may be minor.

A military official said, "Given the severe security situation on the Korean Peninsula, if there is a large-scale personnel change not only in the 'diplomatic and security control tower' but also among general officers, it could negatively affect security, so the focus may shift toward personnel changes at the brigadier general level."

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