1997 Commissioned Officers from Korea Military Academy Class 53, ROTC Class 35, and Officer Candidate School Class 29 Enter 'Star' Rank

On the 6th, the government carried out the second half of the year general officer personnel reshuffle, including transferring Lieutenant General Hwang Yu-seong, the Commander of the Defense Counterintelligence Command, to the position of Deputy Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

According to the Ministry of National Defense, Lieutenant General Hwang Yu-seong, who was promoted to lieutenant general last June under a fixed-term promotion, will move to the position of Deputy Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff with this personnel change. It is virtually the first time that the Commander of the Defense Counterintelligence Command or its predecessor, the Defense Security Command, has held the Deputy Chairman position at the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Lieutenant General Hwang is a seasoned officer who has held key positions such as Director of Planning and Management at the Army Headquarters, Director of Logistics, and Commander of the 20th Mechanized Infantry Division. Since Kim Myung-soo, the nominee for Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is from the Navy, this appointment is interpreted as selecting an Army power expert to maintain balance among the services.

Additionally, Major General Lim Ki-hoon, a former Defense Secretary at the National Security Office and currently an active-duty Army general, was appointed as President of the Korea National Defense University, an agency directly under the Ministry of National Defense. Since last September, attention has been focused inside and outside the Presidential Office on the handling of the death of Marine Corporal Chae Mo and the positions of then Deputy Director Lim Jong-deuk of the National Security Office and Secretary Lim Ki-hoon. Lim Jong-deuk resigned in September before Chuseok and is preparing to run for office in Yeongju, Gyeongbuk, in April next year. Lim Ki-hoon was replaced last month by Secretary Choi Byung-ok. The position of President of the National Defense University had traditionally been held by an active-duty lieutenant general but was adjusted to a major general since December 2020.

Meanwhile, in the Army, Major Generals Kwak Jong-geun, Lee Jin-woo, and Yeo In-hyung were promoted to lieutenant generals and will serve as Commander of the Special Warfare Command, Capital Defense Command, and Defense Counterintelligence Command, respectively. Major Generals Joo Sung-woon, Park Hoo-sung, and Park Jung-taek were also promoted to lieutenant generals and will assume command of frontline corps.

In the Navy, Major Generals Kang Dong-gil and Choi Sung-hyuk were appointed as Deputy Chief of Naval Staff and Commander of Naval Operations, respectively. Both positions are three-star general posts. In the Air Force, Major Generals Kim Hyung-soo, Jin Young-seung, and Son Seok-rak were appointed as Commander of Air Force Operations Command, Director of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Strategic Planning Headquarters, and Deputy Chief of Air Staff, respectively.

Additionally, 14 Army brigadier generals including Kim Sung-gu, 5 Navy brigadier generals including Kang Dong-gu, and 5 Air Force brigadier generals including Kwon Young-min were promoted to major generals and will take on key positions such as division commanders, fleet commanders, and Air Force combat commanders. Furthermore, 79 officers including 52 Army colonels such as Ki Ho-taek, 10 Navy captains such as Kim Dae-woo, 3 Marine colonels such as Kim Heon, and 14 Air Force colonels such as Kang Geun-shin were promoted to brigadier general. This personnel reshuffle marks the first time that graduates from the 53rd class of the Korea Military Academy (commissioned in 1997), the 35th class of the Reserve Officers' Training Corps, and the 29th class of the Officer Candidate School have received stars.

A Ministry of National Defense official explained, "We selected individuals who contribute to fostering a strong military with an offensive spirit, focusing on field experience, operational command capabilities, and trust within the military." He added, "Consideration was given to capabilities and expertise to accelerate the strengthening of the ROK-U.S. alliance, establishment of defense posture, and promotion of defense innovation based on advanced science and technology." He continued, "By announcing the general (four-star) personnel first and then the three-star and below general personnel within a week, we completed the personnel reshuffle early to minimize command gaps." The official concluded, "Through this personnel reshuffle, the military will do its best to become a strong military that fights and wins, a military that is truly military-like."

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