South Korea:
Military & Transnational Issues


Military branches	Army, Navy, Republic of Korea Air Force (Han-guk Kong Goon), Marine Corps, National Maritime Police (coast guard) (2006)
Military service age and obligation	20-30 years of age for compulsory military service; conscript service obligation - 24-28 months, depending on the military branch involved (to be reduced by 6 months beginning 2014); 18 years of age for voluntary military service; women, in service since 1950, admitted to 7 service branches, including infantry, but excluded from artillery, armor, anti-air, and chaplaincy corps; some 4,000 women serve as commissioned and noncommissioned officers, approx. 2.3% of all officers (2007)
Manpower available for military service	males age 20-49: 12,483,677 females age 20-49: 12,014,462 (2005 est.)
Manpower fit for military service	males age 20-49: 10,115,817 females age 20-49: 9,721,914 (2005 est.)
Manpower reaching military age annually	males age 18-49: 344,943 females age 20-49: 312,720 (2005 est.)
Military expenditures - percent of GDP	2.7% (2006)

Disputes - international	Military Demarcation Line within the 4-km wide Demilitarized Zone has separated North from South Korea since 1953; periodic incidents with North Korea in the Yellow Sea over the Northern Limiting Line, which South Korea claims as a maritime boundary; South Korea and Japan claim Liancourt Rocks (Tok-do/Take-shima), occupied by South Korea since 1954