Virus-hit Cheonghae unit arrives home
Jul 21, 2021, 09:03 am
Defense Minister Suh Wook and other military officials welcome a KC-330 multirole aerial tanker that arrived at an air base in Seongnam, south of Seoul, on July 20, 2021, carrying members of the Cheonghae unit, where hundreds of sailors tested positive for the COVID-19./ Source: Ministry of National Defense
AsiaToday reporter Lee Seok-jong
All crew members of South Korea’s virus-hit Cheonghae naval unit returned home from Africa on Tuesday on KC-330 Cygnus multirole tanker airplanes after cutting short their overseas mission following a mass COVID-19 outbreak.
This is the first time that all the members of an overseas contingent have abandoned their mission and returned home due to an infectious disease. President Moon Jae-in said it is hard for the government to avoid criticism that its relevant measures were insufficient. The main opposition People Power Party (PPP) has urged the president to dismiss Defense Minister Suh Wook over the Cheonghae unit’s COVID-19 outbreak. In response, the defense minister issued an apology, saying he feels a “heavy responsibility.”