Naju City Firmly Opposes Deployment of New Weapons on Geumseongsan

City and Civic Groups Hold Emergency Meeting
Maintain Firm Opposition to Permanent Militarization

On the 14th, Yoon Byungtae, mayor of Naju, held a meeting with civic groups opposing the Ministry of National Defense's plan to establish a new weapons system on Geumseongsan Mountain. Photo by Naju City

Amid reports of the Ministry of National Defense's plan to establish a new weapons system at the Air Force base site located at the summit of Geumseongsan in Naju, Jeollanam-do, civic groups have voiced strong opposition. The city of Naju has also aligned itself with the citizens' stance.

According to Naju City on the 18th, Mayor Yoon Byungtae of Naju expressed his opposition to the new weapons deployment plan during a meeting with local civic groups, including the Naju Sarang Citizens' Association, on the 14th.

It has been reported that last year, the Ministry of National Defense requested Jeollanam-do to renew the permit for the use of the Geumseongsan Air Force site and to purchase four parcels of public land on Geumseongsan for the establishment of a new weapons system.

The Ministry of National Defense is said to be planning civil engineering work and the construction of operational facilities, remodeling of existing facilities, and improvements to the perimeter fence on the site, focusing on the "deployment of a new weapons system."

Civic groups condemned, "We are firmly opposed to the renewal and purchase of the Air Force site by the Ministry of National Defense, and the plan to permanently militarize Geumseongsan under the pretext of deploying a new weapons system must be stopped immediately."

Mayor Yoon also stated, "Regarding opposition to the establishment of a new weapons system on Geumseongsan, the city and civic groups cannot have separate positions or roles," and added, "Following last year's achievement of opening the summit of Geumseongsan to the public for the first time in 57 years, we will actively communicate and cooperate with civic groups to protect citizens' safety and Naju's valuable historical, cultural, and ecological resources."

Meanwhile, civic groups plan to form a tentatively named Pan-Citizen Countermeasures Committee Against the Permanent Militarization of Geumseongsan and to launch a full-scale campaign against the deployment of new weapons on Geumseongsan.

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