{"id":2203092,"date":"2023-12-13T08:00:24","date_gmt":"2023-12-12T23:00:24","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2203092"},"modified":"2023-12-12T16:40:00","modified_gmt":"2023-12-12T07:40:00","slug":"south-koreas-big-five-year-defense-plan-clashes-with-yoons-austerity-budget","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/12\/south-koreas-big-five-year-defense-plan-clashes-with-yoons-austerity-budget\/","title":{"rendered":"South Korea\u2019s big five-year defense plan clashes with Yoon\u2019s austerity budget"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">South Korea\u2019s Ministry of National Defense unveiled on Tuesday its \u201c<\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/www.mnd.go.kr\/user\/newsInUserRecord.action?siteId=mnd&amp;page=1&amp;newsId=I_669&amp;newsSeq=I_13541&amp;command=view&amp;id=mnd_020500000000&amp;findStartDate=&amp;findEndDate=&amp;findType=title&amp;findWord=&amp;findOrganSeq=\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2024-2028 Defense Mid-term Plan<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">,\u201d a strategic blueprint for advancing its military capabilities over the next five years. The plan proposes a total budget of $265.6 billion (348.7 trillion won). This budget allocation aims to enhance defense capabilities, particularly against evolving security challenges such as North Korea\u2019s nuclear missile program and unmanned aerial vehicle threats.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Key aspects of the plan include bolstering the three-axis defense system, modernizing military infrastructure and improving the working conditions for junior officers. Additionally, the plan maintains a standing force of 500,000 troops, focusing on efficiency and strategic unit reorganization to support advanced military operations.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><b>Why It Matters<\/b><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The proposed allocation of $265.6 billion toward military advancements over the next five years comes at a time when the Yoon administration is set to propose its <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/11\/opposition-party-deems-yoons-rd-cuts-reckless-budget-showdown-looms\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">2024 budget<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">, which marks the <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/09\/yoons-budget-shifts-south-koreas-economic-strategy-amid-political-tensions\/\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">smallest spending increase since 2005<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">. The proposal will likely spark significant criticism from the main opposition Democratic Party. With parliamentary elections approaching in April, this defense spending plan could become a contentious issue, especially given the two major parties\u2019 contrasting perspectives on fiscal and foreign policies.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The plan\u2019s commitment to maintaining a standing force of 500,000 active troops also raises practical concerns in light of South Korea\u2019s declining birth rate. South Korea\u2019s total fertility rate \u2014 the number of children expected to be born to a woman over her lifetime \u2014 hit a record low of <\/span><a href=\"https:\/\/en.yna.co.kr\/view\/AEN20231206005500315?section=search\"><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">0.78<\/span><\/a><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"> last year. This demographic trend calls into question the feasibility of sustaining such a large military force in the long term.<\/span><\/p>\n<div class=\"content-tags\"><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/defense-security\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Defense &amp; Security<\/span><\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/tag\/domestic-politics\/\"><span class=\"tag\">Domestic Politics<\/span><\/a><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>South Korea\u2019s Ministry of National Defense unveiled on Tuesday its \u201c2024-2028 Defense Mid-term Plan,\u201d a strategic blueprint for advancing its military capabilities over the next five years. The plan proposes a total budget of $265.6 billion (348.7 trillion won). This budget allocation aims to enhance defense capabilities, particularly against evolving security challenges such as North [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":10407,"featured_media":2203093,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[30],"tags":[26,27],"class_list":["post-2203092","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-briefings","tag-defense-security","tag-domestic-politics"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v23.7 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>South Korea\u2019s big five-year defense plan clashes with Yoon\u2019s austerity budget - KOREA PRO<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/12\/south-koreas-big-five-year-defense-plan-clashes-with-yoons-austerity-budget\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"South Korea\u2019s big five-year defense plan clashes with Yoon\u2019s austerity budget - KOREA PRO\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"South Korea\u2019s Ministry of National Defense unveiled on Tuesday its \u201c2024-2028 Defense Mid-term Plan,\u201d a strategic blueprint for advancing its military capabilities over the next five years. 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