South Korea Defence and News Forum

[RajaBaja]

Only South Korea benefits. The US is getting very little and stuck in a forever war. Who cares today if North Korea takes the south ? And shouldn't it be a china problem now ? We keep hearing about China the next great Power blah blah but Chinese never want to get their hands dirty, they just want to machinate behind the scenes and make money. Hence the US remains stuck.

You clearly don't know the depth of this situation or the issue here. Also, if you understand how an MIC exists and works, you'd know both make money.

 

[Watandar]

You clearly don't know the depth of this situation or the issue here. Also, if you understand how an MIC exists and works, you'd know both make money.

you clearly are the expert on everything. There would be no South Korean MIC today, competing with the American MIC, if South Korea had not enjoyed the American protection , funding and tech transfer since 1950s. Same story with Japan, China. None of these countries buy from America or contribute as much as they have taken.

 

[That_Guy]

South Korea's military has shrunk by 20% in six years as male population drops​

By Jack Kim
August 10, 202512:45 PM GMT+5Updated 21 hours ago





Item 1 of 3 Cadets march during a celebration to mark 76th anniversary of Korea Armed Forces Day, in Seongnam, South Korea, October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/Pool/File Photo

[1/3]Cadets march during a celebration to mark 76th anniversary of Korea Armed Forces Day, in Seongnam, South Korea, October 1, 2024. REUTERS/Kim Hong-Ji/Pool/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights, opens new tab

SEOUL, Aug 10 (Reuters) - South Korea's military shrank by 20% in the past six years to 450,000 troops, largely due to a sharp drop in the population of males of enlistment age for mandatory service in the country with the world's lowest birthrate, a report said on Sunday.

The dramatic decline in the pool of available males for military service is also causing a shortfall in the number of officers and could result in operational difficulty if it continues, the defence ministry said in the report.

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The report was made to the ruling Democratic Party member of parliament Choo Mi-ae, whose office released it.

South Korea's military has steadily declined since the early 2000s when it had about 690,000 soldiers. The pace accelerated during the late 2010s and there were about 563,000 active-duty soldiers and officers in 2019.

North Korea is believed to have an active-duty military of about 1.2 million, according to the latest estimate by the defence ministry in 2022.

In the period between 2019 and 2025, the population of 20-year-old males declined by 30% to 230,000, according to government data, the age when most men who pass a physical exam enlist for military service, which is now 18 months long.


The military has cited improved capabilities as a key reason for shortening service periods, made possible by a military alliance with the United States and the development of a defence industry that has become a major exporter of arms.

Able-bodied men served 36 months in 1953 when the Korean War ended in an armistice.

South Korea's defence budget, at more than 61 trillion won ($43.9 billion) in 2025, is larger than the estimated size of North Korea's economy.

Still, the military is 50,000 troops short of the number of troops adequate for maintaining defence readiness, the ministry said. About 21,000 of the shortfall is in the non-commissioned officer ranks, it said.

South Korea is one of the world's fastest ageing societies and has the lowest fertility rate in the world at 0.75 in 2024, which signifies the average number of babies a woman is expected to have during her reproductive life.


Its population, which hit a peak of 51.8 million in 2020, is expected to shrink to 36.2 million by 2072, according to a government projection.
($1 = 1,388.6900 won)

Reporting by Jack Kim; Editing by Christian Schmollinger
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

This is what happens when you have a culture that works people to death.

If the state expects the people to work for the benefit of the state, then the state must first work for the people. The entire point of an independent state and government in a democracy is to work for the betterment of the population, and in turn the population will work and pay taxes to the government.

 

[Muji.Iqbal]

People are not getting married and having children anymore in South Korea it seems.

 

[Watandar]

People are not getting married and having children anymore in South Korea it seems.

Work culture in all of southeast asia is very unreasonable and harsh. They mistakenly call it "hard work". Its downright abusive. Combine that with Western consumption lifestyle and people neither have the time nor interest in marriage and children. They just work and consume.

 

[Baadil]

This is what happens when you have a culture that works people to death.

If the state expects the people to work for the benefit of the state, then the state must first work for the people. The entire point of an independent state and government in a democracy is to work for the betterment of the population, and in turn the population will work and pay taxes to the government.

"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."

 

[Rational Philosopher]

Yeah just like NATO, once countries start enjoying the American gravy train they formalize it with a treaty. Then the US is permanently stuck. Fools in Americs think this makes America great even though the reality is the only American beneficiaries are the MIC and national security racket and the host country.

That's why MAGA want to cut down on this foreign 'diplomacy'

Tbh it was easy to sustain back when the US was dominant but not any longer with its own domestic situation and China

 

[Watandar]

That's why MAGA want to cut down on this foreign 'diplomacy'

Tbh it was easy to sustain back when the US was dominant but not any longer with its own domestic situation and China

It's the only thing I agree with MAGA on. The US is overextended and largely fighting other peoples wars. What the F is America doing in Ukraine or Palestine or still in Korea ??? You find out the MIC and foreign lobbies responsible for the situation.

 

[That_Guy]

"Ask not what your country can do for you, ask what you can do for your country."

Its a shit quote by Kennedy to try and fill up the military recruitment numbers.

Its a two way deal. You work for the betterment of the country, and the country works for your betterment. That's how it should be.

Yet we constantly see the benefits only go to the rich and elites, while the poor and middle class get crumbs.

 

[冖_冖]

Visa-free access sends South Koreans back to China in record numbers

Visa-free access sends South Koreans back to China in record numbers More than 4.7 million traveled in the first seven months of 2025, eclipsing last years total

www.chosun.com

Visa-free access sends South Koreans back to China in record numbers​

More than 4.7 million traveled in the first seven months of 2025, eclipsing last year's total

Published 2025.08.14. 14:28

Since late 2024, China has temporarily allowed South Koreans to enter without a visa for up to 30 days—a move that has sparked a surge in travel. From January through July 2025, more than 4.7 million passengers left South Korea for China, surpassing the nation’s total for all of 2023.

Shanghai emerged as the top destination, with more than a quarter of flights from South Korean airports landing at Pudong or Hongqiao International Airports.

According to industry data, 31,343 flights carried 4,704,581 passengers to China in the first seven months of the year. If the trend continues, total arrivals for 2025 could reach 8 million—a 139 percent jump from 2023 and nearly 18 percent higher than 2024.

Data from the Ministry of Justice show an even sharper rise among South Korean travelers. Since the visa-free program’s introduction in November 2024, departures to China climbed 51.7 percent compared with the same period the previous year.

The boom has prompted travel agencies to unveil a wave of China-focused packages, fueled by speculation that the visa-free period could be extended or made permanent. Under the current policy, valid through Dec. 31, 2025, South Koreans may visit China for tourism, family visits, business, or cultural exchanges, with no limit on the number of entries or cumulative stay.

South Korea plans to allow Chinese group tourists visa-free entry beginning in September, adding to expectations that the reciprocal arrangement for South Koreans may also be prolonged.

 

[j_hungary]

Its a shit quote by Kennedy to try and fill up the military recruitment numbers.

Its a two way deal. You work for the betterment of the country, and the country works for your betterment. That's how it should be.

Yet we constantly see the benefits only go to the rich and elites, while the poor and middle class get crumbs.

Most people misunderstood that quote, and most Republicans (generally hawkish side) use that to trumpet the idea of Patriotism. The issue is, JFK is a Democrats, he would never see the Government as an institution that people serves and people usually ignore the next 2 sentences of his address, which is the actual sentence that bring home the point

The address is as follows;

And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you--ask what you can do for your country.

My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.

Finally, whether you are citizens of America or citizens of the world, ask of us here the same high standards of strength and sacrifice which we ask of you. With a good conscience our only sure reward, with history the final judge of our deeds, let us go forth to lead the land we love, asking His blessing and His help, but knowing that here on earth God's work must truly be our own.

He strongly believes that Americans, as citizens of the world, have to do their part do advance the freedom of man, the concept is that, American as the world citizens have the duty for betterment for all mankind, but at the same time, we should never ask what the American can better the world, but what can we do, as a person, to better mankind, this is probably the most grassroots thing he would have said, but all those are ignored by the Hawk to basically use his word to sell warbond. Which is the complete opposite idea of why he wrote that speech.

 

[RealNapster]

What is south Korea doing to resolve it's aging population problem ?

 

[Waz]

They're fading into history like the Japanese.
Only the most extreme of actions and policies can reverse this decline.
They even resorted to finding ethnic Korean people in other parts of the world to settle there, with grants and all sorts.

 

[RealNapster]

They're fading into history like the Japanese.
Only the most extreme of actions and policies can reverse this decline.
They even resorted to finding ethnic Korean people in other parts of the world to settle there, with grants and all sorts.

Maybe the solution is joining both Korea's .

 

[Waz]

Maybe the solution is joining both Korea's .

As this stage they really need to. The North has a birthrate of 1.8 which is healthy and can replenish the South.