'War paradigm shifting fast… personnel, units and capabilities must be redesigned as one'
'GOP, coastal border alert ops to go AI… talent development and system reform must follow'
Minister of National Defense Ahn Gyu-baek has laid out a vision for defense reform centered on building a smart, elite military powered by AI and advanced science and technology, calling for a sweeping transformation of the armed forces' overall structure.
Speaking at the opening ceremony of a defense reform seminar held Tuesday at the War Memorial of Korea's Lee Byung-hyung Hall in Yongsan, Seoul, Ahn said the military must act preemptively through bold change as the paradigm of war shifts rapidly.
Ahn cited conflicts that erupted in Europe and the Middle East over the past three years as evidence that "the nature of modern warfare is changing dramatically." He also raised concerns that North Korea is accumulating combat experience and operational know-how through the Russia-Ukraine war, underscoring the need for military innovation to address an increasingly complex security environment.
He identified an AI- and advanced-technology-driven smart elite force as the core direction for defense reform. He argued that the overhaul must go beyond simply adopting new technology to encompass a comprehensive redesign of personnel, unit and capability structures.
"To win future wars, we must dramatically restructure the military," Ahn said. "We need to redesign our personnel, units and force structure with the demographic cliff in mind, and shift General Outpost and coastal and riverine border surveillance operations to AI-based systems."
He also called for parallel efforts to develop talent capable of operating advanced technologies and to reform the supporting institutional framework. "Technology alone is not enough," he said. "We must simultaneously build a talent development system and put in place the institutional arrangements needed to transform the entire character of national defense."
Ahn identified public trust and tangible results on the ground as the conditions for successful defense reform. "Defense reform must be pursued on the foundation of public trust, and it is complete only when real change is felt on the battlefield," he said.
He added that the process requires prioritization — stripping away what is unnecessary and concentrating on what is essential. "The decisions we make now will determine the future of South Korea's national defense," he said.
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