Defense Minister Ahn Kyu-baek speaks to reporters in Singapore on May 30 (local time) at the Asian Security Conference (Shangri-La Dialogue). [Yonhap News]

The security and defense of the nation are solemn missions and commands entrusted to the armed forces by Article 5 of the Constitution. The Minister of National Defense, as the highest executive responsible for fulfilling these duties, must dedicate himself solely to maintaining a firm security posture and ensuring the well-being of our soldiers.

However, what is the current conduct of Defense Minister Ahn Kyu-baek?

We are now facing a tragic reality where incomprehensible policies and organizational reforms, inexplicable from a security common sense perspective, are shaking the very foundations of national security, undermining the solidarity of our alliance, and through political maneuvering, destroying the educational system of our service academies and even the sacred ground of national defense, thereby demolishing the nation itself.

Therefore, with a heart full of anguish for the defense of the Republic of Korea, we hereby designate the defense leadership pursuing security policies in the opposite direction as anti-state and rebellious forces, and impeach them in the name of the court of history.

First, we impeach the crime of rebellion for breaking the solidarity of the ROK-US alliance through the push for the transfer of wartime operational control.

Defense Minister Ahn Kyu-baek is creating serious cracks in the ROK-US alliance, a cornerstone of security, by pushing for the transfer of wartime operational control prematurely amidst the grave situation on the Korean Peninsula. This reckless policy, which shakes the combined ROK-US defense system, a powerful deterrent to our national security, is a perilous act of gambling with national security.

The responsibility for undermining allied trust and creating a security vacuum through the blind and hasty pursuit of the transfer of wartime operational control is by no means insignificant. The ROK-US alliance is more than just a military cooperation; it is the foundation of the Republic of Korea's survival and prosperity. Actions that shake the military and the alliance, the last bastion of our nation's defense, are not merely security failures but acts of treason, and thus the court of history declares impeachment.

Second, we impeach for the responsibility of dismantling the Counterintelligence Command, which paralyzes the nervous system of national security.

The Ministry of National Defense has recently unilaterally announced a bizarre reorganization plan to dismantle the Republic of Korea Army Counterintelligence Command, which has protected the military's security and secrets for half a century, and to fragment its functions among various agencies. The prevention of espionage, protection of military secrets, and prevention of defense technology leaks are the bulwarks of national survival.

This anti-security conduct, which paralyzes the counterintelligence system without sufficient verification, leading to an intelligence vacuum and security incapacitation, is a clear dereliction of duty and a violation of the Constitution. As enemy threats become increasingly robust and sophisticated, this act of self-inflicted harm by removing our security shield is an act that benefits the enemy, and therefore we impeach without delay in the name of the court of history.

Third, we impeach Ahn Kyu-baek's security devastation for pushing for the closure of the Korea Military Academy under the pretext of integrating service academies.

The closure of the Korea Military Academy is a political ploy disguised as "integration" and "efficiency." This is an act of betrayal that denies 80 years of national defense history and intentionally destroys the identity of the military and the solidarity of its officer corps. This is a destructive maneuver that recklessly wastes national budget through integration, incites regional conflict through the selection of the Korea Military Academy site, and shakes the foundation of national security by using security as a political card.

Such anti-state conduct, aimed at draining the spirit of the military and eradicating its independence, cannot be justified by any pretext. As it rightfully deserves public judgment, we impeach Defense Minister Ahn Kyu-baek in the name of the court of history.

Fourth, the National Assembly must immediately impeach the security-devastating Ahn Kyu-baek based on the impeachment by the court of history.

Minister Ahn Kyu-baek's conduct severely violates the duties of the Minister of National Defense as mandated by the Constitution. The National Assembly must immediately launch a parliamentary investigation to thoroughly expose the background of all policies that have gone against security common sense, including the process of transferring wartime operational control that shook the ROK-US alliance, the behind-the-scenes decision to dismantle the Counterintelligence Command, and the conspiracy to close the Korea Military Academy, and to identify those who issued unconstitutional orders and their collaborators.

Upon confirmation of any violation of laws as stipulated in Article 65 of the Constitution, the National Assembly must immediately initiate impeachment proceedings and remove Defense Minister Ahn Kyu-baek from office.

There is no partisan division or practice when it comes to security. There can be no unjust concessions in national defense disguised as peace. We command in the name of the court of history and the people to set right the crumbling security of the Republic of Korea and to ensure that such tragic security breakdowns are never repeated.

We urge the legal punishment of the primary perpetrators among the political leaders who are devastating national security from their positions of responsibility for its defense and leading the nation into crisis, as well as all their accomplices who have aided them.

June 19, 2026,

By the Serverkka Korea Military Academy Defense Association