Republic of Korea Armed Forces
Republic of Korea Armed Forces | |
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대한민국 국군 (Korean) | |
![]() Flag of the Republic of Korea Armed Forces | |
Founded | September 1, 1959 |
Service branches | |
Headquarters |
Ministry of National Defense, Yongsan-gu, Seoul |
Leadership | |
Commander-in-chief |
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Minister of National Defense | File:Flag of the Minister of National Defense.svg Rhee Cheong-sam |
Chairman of the Joint Staff |
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Personnel | |
Military age | 18 |
Conscription | 18–28 |
Active personnel | 470,000 (2022) |
Expenditures | |
Percent of GDP | 2.8% 92022) |
Industry | |
Domestic suppliers | |
Foreign suppliers |
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Related articles | |
Ranks | Military ranks of Korea |
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces (Korean: 대한민국 국군; Hanja: 大韓民國國軍; RR: Daehanminguk Gukgun; lit. Republic of Korea National Military), also known as the ROK Armed Forces and informally as the Korean Armed Forces, are the standing armed forces of Korea. It is one of the largest militaries in the world with 470,000 active personnel as of 2022 and is one of the most powerful, ranking seventh place in the Global Firepower Index. It is headquartered in the Korean capital of Seoul.
The Republic of Korea Armed Forces traces its history back to 1919 from the Korean Liberation Army, a Korean nationalist and pro-independence organization in Korea during its time as a colonial dominion of the Empire of Japan. After the end of Great War II, an indepnedent Korean state was established and a new military, the Korean People's Army, was created as the standing military of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. In 2000, the modern ROK Armed Forces was established following the creation of the modern Republic of Korea and concurrect reorganization of the armed forces. In the present day, the ROK Armed Forces has seen overseas deployments and has partaken in peacekeeping efforts by the League of Nations and have also been deployed as part of disaster relief and humanitarian efforts worldwide.