Defense ministry unveils security measures for military bases after civilian intrusions

SEOUL, April 17 (Yonhap) -- The defense ministry announced a series of measures to beef up the security of military bases in the wake of embarrassing civilian intrusions, including improving CCTVs and other surveillance systems and mobilizing Army and Marine Corps troops to guard naval bases.

The ministry unveiled these measures after Minister Jeong Kyeong-doo held a videoconference with around 30 top military commanders to discuss how to prevent any recurrence of such security breaches.

The Marine Corps will be mobilized to support the Navy with its missions of protecting major naval bases across the country, and Army liaison officers will be given greater roles regarding those security operations, according to the ministry.

The military authorities have been grappling with ways to better protect naval bases, which usually involve vast coastal lines, particularly after two civic activists cut barbed wire fences and intruded into a naval compound on the southern island of Jeju last month.

"Such measures were made after close coordination between the branches, and they will be implemented on a temporary basis until the authorities make fundamental measures for the protection of naval bases," the ministry said in a release.

graceoh@yna.co.kr
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