Military to exempt Daegu residents from annual reserve forces' training

SEOUL, March 20 (Yonhap) -- The military has decided to exempt reservists residing in the southeastern city of Daegu and its nearby regions from regular training this year as the regions were designated as special disaster zones over the new coronavirus outbreak, the defense ministry said Friday.

The decision is part of government efforts to stabilize the regions and support their early recovery from the economic damage incurred by COVID-19, the ministry said.

The ministry also plans to give a similar training exemption to public medical staff who have taken part in the ongoing anti-virus efforts, it said.

Earlier, the military postponed the regular training sessions for the reserves forces twice to June and reduced the training period amid a spike in the number of the new virus infections.

As of Friday, the military has reported no additional cases of the new virus among service personnel for the ninth day in a row, with the total number of infections remaining unchanged at 38.

scaaet@yna.co.kr
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