Further Cases Found Beyond Army I Corps in 'Unloaded Rifle Guard': Defense Ministry to Issue Institutional Warnings

Ministry of National Defense Conducts Inspections Since August Following I Corps Controversy

Institutional Warning Issued to Ground Operations Command for System Improvement

The Ministry of National Defense conducted inspections following controversy over the Army I Corps' "unloaded rifles on guard" operations, and as a result, found similar issues in the II, III, and V Corps, which are responsible for defending frontline guard posts (GP) and general outposts (GOP).

Army archive photo. The photo is not directly related to the content of the article.

According to the office of Kang Sunyoung, a member of the National Assembly National Defense Committee from the People Power Party, on October 5, it was found that, in addition to the I Corps, cases of personal and crew-served weapons not being loaded with live ammunition were also confirmed in the II, III, and V Corps, which are in charge of GP and GOP front-line guard duties.

The Ministry of National Defense has decided to issue institutional warnings to the I and II Corps, the 22nd Division under III Corps, and the Ground Operations Command—the higher headquarters for frontline corps—due to violations of procedures and deviations from the policy of loading live ammunition.

Since the method of carrying ammunition falls under the jurisdiction of the Ground Operations Command, the Command will receive an institutional warning, while the Joint Chiefs of Staff will be subject to corrective action to improve its operational procedures. The responsibility for changing whether live ammunition is carried lies with the Corps Commander, but, according to the regulations, any changes must be reported to and reviewed by the higher-level Ground Operations Command. There will be no disciplinary action against individuals such as Army I Corps Commander Han Kisung, who had been suspended from duty following the controversy. This is because there are many people involved in each unit, making it difficult to single out individuals; hence, corrective measures will be implemented through institutional warnings.

Although cases of weapons not being loaded with live ammunition were also found in the V Corps, the Corps was excluded from warnings, as appropriate procedures were followed, including revising its own guidance documents under the direction of the Corps Commander.

Previously, in July, it emerged that from the first half of this year, the I Corps—which is responsible for the western front—had revised its guard operation guidelines to prohibit loading live ammunition into crew-served weapons such as the K6 heavy machine gun and K4 automatic grenade launcher during GP and GOP guard operations, sparking controversy. It was also revealed that live ammunition was not loaded into personal firearms either. The standard procedure when the military conducts front-line guard duty is to insert a magazine loaded with live rounds into the weapon, following the principle of carrying loaded firearms.

Meanwhile, it was observed that these circumstances have persisted since North Korea's December 2023 declaration of a "hostile two-state theory," raising concerns as to whether front-line military operations have been adequately prepared. However, the Ministry of National Defense explained that the timing of changes to ammunition carrying methods is determined on a corps-by-corps basis, is not related to any specific event, and differs between units.

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