Park An-su

In this Korean name, the family name is Park.

Park An-su
박안수
Chief of Staff of the Army
Incumbent
Assumed office 31 October 2023
President	Yoon Suk Yeol Han Duck-soo (acting) Choi Sang-mok (acting)
Preceded by	Park Jeong-hwan
Personal details
Born	(1968-05-28) 28 May 1968 (age 56) Cheongdo, North Gyeongsang Province, South Korea[1]
Alma mater	Korea Military Academy
Military service
Allegiance	South Korea
Branch/service	Republic of Korea Army
Years of service	1990–present
Rank	General
Unit	Chief of Staff of the Army

Park An-su (Korean: 박안수; Hanja: 朴安洙;[2] born 28 May 1968) is a South Korean army general serving as the Chief of Staff of the Army.[3]

Career

Chief of Staff

In May 2024, Park travelled to the United States to attend the Land Forces Pacific Symposium.[4]

Martial Law Commander

On 3 December 2024, Park was appointed by South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol as Martial Law Commander following the president's declaration of martial law made the same day.[5] Under him, the Martial Law Command issued Proclamation No. 1, which prohibited all political activities, strikes and work stoppages, and dissemination of material supporting efforts to "overthrow the liberal democratic system."[6]

On 4 December 2024, martial law was lifted and Martial Law Command was disbanded.[7]

On 5 December 2024, Park told lawmakers that he did not write the martial law declaration, and before approving a draft of the declaration, he only fixed "an error with [the] stated timing".[8] He also said he was unaware of soldiers being deployed to the National Assembly.[9] Park also submitted his resignation to Yoon, which was rejected.[10]

Arrest

On 17 December 2024, Park was arrested for "insurrection and abuse of power" with a court-issued warrant, becoming the fifth to be arrested on the matter of the martial law declaration. [11]

References

1. "박안수 육군총장… '국군의날' 시가행진 준비한 야전 전문가 [프로필]". 뉴스1 (in Korean). 29 October 2023. Retrieved 23 November 2023.
2. "육군 참모총장 이력". 육군본부. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
3. Hang-Hun, Choe (3 December 2024). "South Korean Leader Declares Martial Law". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
4. "South Korean army chief meets with ally counterparts in US trip". The Korea Herald. 20 May 2024. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
5. [속보] 계엄사령관에 육군 대장 박안수. 연합뉴스. 2024-12-03. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
6. "Full Text of Martial Law Command Proclamation (No. 1)". The Seoul Economic Times (in Korean). 3 December 2024. Retrieved 3 December 2024.
7. "South Korea lifts president's martial law decree after lawmakers vote against it". AP News. 2024-12-03. Retrieved 2024-12-03.
8. "South Korea's President Yoon Suk Yeol asked to leave own party". BBC News. Retrieved 2024-12-05.
9. Kim, Seung-yeon (5 December 2024). "(LEAD) Ex-defense minister ordered deployment of troops to Nat'l Assembly during martial law". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
10. Kim, Eun-jung (5 December 2024). "(LEAD) Yoon rejects resignation offer from Army chief involved in martial law declaration". Yonhap News Agency. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
11. Hyun-soo, Kim (2024-12-17). "(LEAD) Martial law commander arrested over alleged insurrection | Yonhap News Agency". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on 2024-12-18. Retrieved 2024-12-19.