Updated at 4:00 p.m. KST on Sept. 28, 2023 with the confirmation hearing result.

The nominee to be South Korea’s next defense minister vowed to suspend a military agreement with North Korea “as soon as possible” once appointed, speaking at his confirmation hearing on Wednesday.

Under the Comprehensive Military Agreement (CMA) signed in Sept. 2018, the two Koreas agreed to set up aerial and maritime buffer zones and to ban live-fire drills using artillery and coastal guns. They also partially withdrew guard posts from the border.

“The inter-Korean military agreement primarily benefits North Korea and is largely unfavorable for us,”