Conservative opposition lawmakers are pursuing a National Assembly resolution condemning the Lee Jae-myung government's plan to establish a unified Korea Armed Forces Academy. People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Yong-won said Friday he had introduced the resolution as its lead sponsor. A rendering of the proposed Korea Armed Forces Academy. [Herald DB]
Conservative opposition lawmakers are pursuing a National Assembly resolution condemning the Lee Jae-myung government's plan to establish a unified Korea Armed Forces Academy. People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Yong-won said Friday he had introduced the resolution as its lead sponsor. A rendering of the proposed Korea Armed Forces Academy. [Herald DB]

Conservative opposition lawmakers are pursuing a National Assembly resolution condemning the Lee Jae-myung government's plan to establish a unified Korea Armed Forces Academy.

The resolution also urges the government to build an officer training system grounded in the distinct expertise of each military branch.

People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Yong-won, a member of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee, said Friday he had introduced the resolution as its lead sponsor.

The list of co-sponsors includes 34 other People Power Party lawmakers, along with Reform Party floor leader Cheon Ha-ram and independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon — a combination that has drawn attention.

The resolution said it "strongly condemns" President Lee's remarks identifying the Korea Military Academy as the core force behind multiple coups, which it described as "a dark shadow over our modern history," expressing deep concern over the characterization.

During a Defense Ministry briefing on Wednesday, Lee said: "How many military coups has South Korea had? Were they not all carried out by the Army? They were done by Korea Military Academy graduates — has anyone ever been held accountable for that? Could it not happen again?"

The resolution criticized the remarks as reflecting "a guilt-by-association mentality that generalizes the responsibility of specific individuals onto the entire Korea Military Academy." It added that the comments "plainly revealed that the government's stated rationale for consolidating the service academies and establishing the Korea Armed Forces Academy — reforming the education system and strengthening jointness — has in effect been nothing more than a pretext for political purposes."

The resolution further called on Lee to immediately retract the remarks, which it said "have damaged the honor of more than 1,600 Korea Military Academy-graduate officers who were killed or died in the line of duty defending South Korea since the Korean War, their bereaved families, and the countless academy-graduate officers who are protecting the nation's security at this very moment."

People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Yong-won, a member of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee, holds a press conference Friday at the National Assembly press center to announce the introduction of a resolution condemning the Lee Jae-myung government's politically motivated push to establish a Korea Armed Forces Academy and urging the creation of an officer training system based on each branch's distinct expertise. [Yonhap]
People Power Party lawmaker Yoo Yong-won, a member of the National Assembly's National Defense Committee, holds a press conference Friday at the National Assembly press center to announce the introduction of a resolution condemning the Lee Jae-myung government's politically motivated push to establish a Korea Armed Forces Academy and urging the creation of an officer training system based on each branch's distinct expertise. [Yonhap]

The resolution also urged the government to immediately halt its unilateral push to establish the Korea Armed Forces Academy, which it said was being driven by political motives without objective verification or procedural legitimacy.

It called on the government to "transparently disclose to the public and the National Assembly the research findings and policy rationale behind the Korea Armed Forces Academy plan, including its educational effectiveness, total project costs including relocation expenses, cost-benefit analysis, and projected timeline."

The resolution added that the government should "maintain and develop an officer training system rooted in the expertise and identity of each military branch, and on that basis establish an officer education framework suited to the future security environment, including joint education and advanced military training."

Yoo said the Korea Armed Forces Academy plan "is being pushed forward unilaterally for political purposes" and stressed that it "must be halted immediately, as it lacks both policy justification and procedural legitimacy."


shindw@heraldcorp.com