Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

New chairman of the joint chiefs of staff (JCS) General Park Han-ki has vowed to build a strong military based on "Seon Seung Gu Jeon," an ancient Chinese saying that translates to “wins first, and fights later," to accomplish the missions of the times. In his inauguration ceremony, which was held at the parade grounds of the Ministry of National Defense in Seoul on October 11th, Park said, “The people of Republic of Korea are asking our military forces to be reliable, and to be able to defend them and the nation as they maintain a posture of readiness against any possible contingencies.”

Park's suggestions based on the "wins first and fights later" vision include ▲ the expansion of advanced military capabilities by stably promoting Defense Reform 2.0, ▲ ensuring military forces have high morale and are armed with a resolve for victory by developing the capabilities to perform theater operations and maintain readiness posture despite the shifting security environment, ▲ establishment of pivotal cooperation doubling ability by gathering the sentiment of the army, navy, air force, and marine corps, and ▲deterrence by exploiting the full spectrum of military readiness postures and the capabilities prepared for combined and joint operations.

Park also spoke on the importance of the Republic of Korea-US combined defense posture. “I will focus my capabilities on building up strategic conditions for peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula by maintaining the firm combined defense posture between Republic of Korea and US that has been the backbone of our national security for about 60 years,” he said.

On the recent peace situation of the Korean Peninsula, Park stressed that our military should defend the people and the nation with strong power, saying that “the direction in which we are headed is a place where nobody has gone before, so it may be difficult, but we must not stop moving forward.” He also added that he will work actively to fulfill all military-related requirements as part of the implementation of the Panmunjom Declaration for permanent peace and co-prosperity on the Korean Peninsula, and will ensure a strong readiness posture against any possible contingencies. 

“I will do my best to build a military that has strong morale, fights after winning, and has the trust of the people. As the chairman of the Republic of Korea JCS, I will devote myself to the realization of 'strong security and responsible national defense,’” Park promised, and then quoted another Chinese saying, 'cheonhasuan mangjeonpilwi,' which means "even when there is peace in the world, you will be in danger unless you prepare for war." 

By Su-Yeol, Maeng <guns13@dema.mil.kr >

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