Choo Mi-ae: "Ministry of National Defense Approved Expansion of 7,800 'Bihwaphone' Devices One Month Before Martial Law"

Military: "To Ensure Efficient Operations"
Representative Chu: "Must Clarify the Reason for Distribution to Staff"

In the early morning of December 4 last year, martial law troops attempted to enter the National Assembly main building. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

On the 27th, Chu Mi-ae, a member of the National Defense Committee of the National Assembly from the Democratic Party of Korea, revealed that the Ministry of National Defense had approved a plan to distribute an additional 7,800 bihwaphones (security phones) one month before the declaration of the December 3 emergency martial law. Bihwaphones are mobile phones equipped with anti-tapping and call recording prevention programs.

According to the 'Defense Policy Working Meeting' schedule and result report received by Representative Chu from the Ministry of National Defense, the Ministry deliberated and approved a plan to expand the distribution targets of bihwaphones within the Ministry and the military from October 28 to November 1 last year. The scale amounts to a total of 7,800 units, including 3,806 units in 2024 and 4,020 units in 2025.

The Ministry of National Defense decided to distribute 96 bihwaphones to directors and section chiefs of the Ministry and key policy officers of the Joint Chiefs of Staff within last year. The Army and Marine Corps planned to distribute 3,193 units to battalion commanders and above, as well as key staff, within last year, and 1,659 units this year. The Defense Counterintelligence Command plans to distribute 1,525 bihwaphones to field counterintelligence agents within this year. Additionally, the Navy is to receive 396 units, the Air Force 460 units, and military investigative agencies 218 units, distributed from last year through this year.

If distributed as planned, the total number of bihwaphones under the Ministry of National Defense's jurisdiction will reach 9,816 units within this year, approximately five times the 1,990 units at the end of 2023. Representative Chu stated that the Ministry has actually expanded the distribution of bihwaphones to key directors and staff following this approval.

Choo Mi-ae, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, revealed that the Ministry of National Defense approved a plan to distribute an additional 7,800 secure phones (security phones) one month before the declaration of the December 3 emergency martial law.

The Ministry of National Defense stated the purpose of expanding the distribution of bihwaphones was "to ensure efficient operational conditions for the military and to establish operational security in response to changes in the security environment."

Representative Chu argued, "It appears that bihwaphones were expanded to Ministry staff under the direction of then-Minister of National Defense Kim Yong-hyun," and added, "The background for the planned concentrated expansion of distribution to the Counterintelligence Command, the core unit of the December 3 insurrection, must be clearly revealed."

Previously, there were suspicions that the Presidential Security Service had unusually provided a bihwaphone to Kim Geon-hee, wife of President Yoon Suk-yeol, but Kim Seong-hoon, deputy director of the Security Service, refused to respond, saying, "We cannot confirm that."

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