20% of ranking officers to be retired

The Defense Ministry plans to cut, over the coming five years, 20 percent of upper-ranking jobs filled by officers above lieutenant colonels or civilian employees of grade 4 and above at the headquarters of the Joint Chiefs of Staff and the respective armed services.

Minister Cho Seong-Tae on Tuesday delivered the guidelines on the 10 percent reduction of military personnel costs, requesting the subordinate services and units to prepare and submit their own blueprints for voluntary cost cutting and downsizing by the end of February.

The guidelines call for downsizing administrative and support units, excluding combat units, and a l0 percent cut in the staff of such units, research institutes and educational agencies that are under the direct control of the ministry proper.

The downsizing plan is to be presented to President Kim Dae-Jung on Feb. 19. Moon Dong-Myung, the ministry`s planning-coordination director, said that the streamlining scheme will be finalized by the end of February on the basis of the opinions offered by the various services and units, and such items as would be practicable immediately would be translated into the budget for next year upon review through March and April.

Additional review will be carried out continuously on the remaining mid- and long-term agenda.

Accelerated retirement and decreased promotion of ranking officials will be the primary option to implement downsizing, Moon added.