UAE Mulls Recruiting Retired Korean Soldiers

The Korean military and the United Arab Emirates are reportedly discussing sending retired Korean soldiers to work in the Middle Eastern country.

A Korean military source said Friday, “Abu Dhabi`s Crown Prince Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan mentioned reemployment of retired Korean soldiers while visiting Korea late last month,” adding, “We understand that the UAE expects Korea’s excellent retired servicemen to play important roles in a diversity of industrial fields.”

“We are waiting to hear how many staff the UAE needs,” the source said. “Once the number is fixed, we will hold a discussion in earnest primarily through the Korea Veterans Association.”

Crown Prince Mohammed played a key role in helping Korea land a major deal to provide nuclear power plants to the UAE late last year.

The Korean military estimates that it can send 400 to 600 retired officers from the armed forces to the UAE. The contingent will mainly comprise officers and petty officers who retired as career servicemen.

Another source said, “When the (Korea Electric Power Corp.) consortium secured the UAE nuclear plant project late last year, we exchanged a memorandum of understanding on military cooperation, the pending plan is part of the deal,” adding, “The dispatch of retired soldiers will set a good precedent in the reemployment of retired veterans.

Korean Defense Minister Yoon Tae-young signed an MOU on comprehensive cooperation and exchange between the two countries while visiting the UAE late last year. The two sides agreed on 20 items including exchange of defense technology, cooperation in military training, exchange of senior officers, and assistance in pilot training, but stopped short of elaborating.

President Lee Myung-bak in February reportedly instructed his aides to study how to help retired servicemen land jobs.

mhpark@donga.com