Lee orders ‘swift, decisive’ merger of military academies to prevent another coup

President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday ordered the Defense Ministry to move “swiftly and decisively” on a contentious plan to merge South Korea’s three military academies, linking the overhaul to a broader effort to reduce the risk of military intervention in politics.

Lee invoked three coups in South Korean history, saying all had centered on the Army and graduates of the Korea Military Academy, which trains Army officers.

“The Korea Military Academy was at the center of no fewer than three coups, yet it has never once been held accountable,” Lee said at a Defense Ministry policy briefing. “It could happen again, couldn’t it?”

Lee pointed out that merging the three academies could reduce that risk. “Wouldn’t integration make this less likely to happen?” he said.

Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back noted that the military had undertaken unprecedented structural changes after then-President Yoon Suk Yeol’s Dec. 3 martial law declaration, including sweeping reforms and the dismantling of parts of its military intelligence apparatus.

“In any case, this is not something we can simply let slide because it is in the past and the attempt was put down,” Lee said.

Lee argued that preventing another military intervention required changing the institutional conditions that could enable it.

“We must eliminate the conditions that allowed that to happen,” Lee said. “It is not necessarily that the people involved are bad. Given an opportunity and an incentive, people can give in. We need a rational training system that makes such acts impossible.”

After being told that Korea Military Academy graduates account for more than half of South Korea’s 375 generals, Lee criticized their dominance of the senior ranks, saying they make up “only a small share of junior officers” but “all but monopolize” positions going up the hierarchy.

When Ahn pledged to pursue the merger “with a sense of responsibility” and continue seeking public understanding “until people say no further explanation is needed,” Lee urged him to move more quickly.

“Press ahead with it swiftly and decisively. This is what happens when all we do is talk,” Lee said. “Let’s move faster.”

When Ahn said the government was going through an “extremely difficult process,” Lee replied: “Of course it is difficult. What reform in the world is not difficult? It is bound to be extremely difficult.”

The government unveiled its blueprint for a unified National Armed Forces Academy on July 16. Ahn said the new school would strengthen joint operations and professional training while developing officers with advanced scientific and technological expertise.

During the policy briefing, Lee also pressed the Defense and Foreign ministries to accelerate negotiations with Washington over the return of former US military base sites in Korea.

“Negotiations over the return of land provided for US military use appear to be taking far too long,” Lee said. “Even though we spent an enormous amount of money building the Pyeongtaek base for US forces and they have moved in, there are still many sites they had agreed to vacate but have not.”

Lee also pointed to sites that had been vacated but remained effectively unusable because follow-up measures had not been completed.

“Isn’t this a serious problem? And it is not just one or two sites,” Lee said.

Most of the 82 US military installations designated for return have been handed back, but key sites — including parts of Yongsan Garrison in Seoul and Camp Casey in Dongducheon — have yet to be returned.

“The US side has been passive in engaging in discussions, so we have been pressing it to move forward,” Ahn said.

Lee then criticized the sequencing of the relocation project, under which South Korea completed the new Pyeongtaek base before all the former US military sites were returned.

“This is why you should never pay up front,” Lee said. Referring to the reasons given for the delays, he added, “To me, they sound almost like excuses.”

Ahn pledged to move the negotiations forward “with greater urgency.” Lee then directed the Foreign Ministry to step up its involvement as well.

At a Unification Ministry policy briefing, Lee urged caution over Unification Minister Chung Dong-young’s proposal to refer to North Korea by its official name, the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, or “Choson” in Korean.

Lee drew a distinction between the intentions behind reconciliation initiatives and their real-world consequences, cautioning that even well-meaning gestures could become political ammunition and undermine the goals they were meant to advance.

South Korea currently refers to the North as “North Korea” rather than its official name, as Seoul does not recognize its ties with North Korea as state-to-state relations under the Constitution.

“Calling South and North Korea by their official names is open to debate,” Lee said. “I am sure you are doing it in good faith and with the aim of improving relations, but it appears to have stirred controversy recently.”

Lee acknowledged that raising contentious issues could broaden public debate and that accepting some political cost could sometimes help bring about progress. But he warned that good intentions did not necessarily produce good outcomes.

“We may have good values and ideals, but if a particular expression is seized upon and dragged into a partisan fight, it could end up producing a worse outcome than what we originally intended,” Lee said. “It is regrettable, but this seems to happen particularly often in inter-Korean relations.”

Lee said the political backlash had led him to question whether unilateral gestures made in good faith would ultimately advance peace and stability.

“It is regrettable. This is an extremely difficult task for the Unification Ministry, but I ask the ministry to give it careful thought.”