SEOUL, South Korea (AP) — Suga, a rapper and songwriter in the global K-pop sensation BTS, has been discharged from South Korea’s mandatory military service, marking the official return of all seven members from their enlistment duties.
The label confirmed that Suga completed his alternative service duties on Wednesday after using up his remaining leave. His official discharge date is Saturday.
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FILE - K-pop band BTS members Jimin, right, and Jung Kook salute after being discharged from a mandatory military service in Yeoncheon, South Korea, Wednesday, June 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)
FILE - K-pop band BTS members RM, left, and V react after being discharged from a mandatory military service in Chuncheon, South Korea, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)
FILE - Members of BTS perform at the Times Square New Year's Eve celebration in New York on Dec. 31, 2019. (Photo by Ben Hider/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - BTS poses in the press room with the awards for favorite pop duo or group, favorite pop song for "Butter," and artist of the year at the American Music Awards on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021, at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - Suga, a member of South Korean K-pop band BTS, poses for photographers ahead of a press conference to introduce their new single "Butter" in Seoul, South Korea on May 21, 2021. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)
FILE - Korean pop band BTS accepts the award for top duo group at the Billboard Music Awards on May 1, 2019, in Las Vegas. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
BTS’ management agency, Big Hit Entertainment, had said earlier that no events were planned for Suga’s release out of concern for overcrowding.
It is a momentous occasion for fans of the K-pop group BTS. The seven singers of the popular K-pop band plan to reunite as a group sometime in 2025 now that they've finished their service.
Last week, BTS superstars RM and V were discharged from South Korea’s military after fulfilling their mandatory service. Jimin and Jung Kook were discharged a day later. All four were enlisted in December 2023.
Six of the group’s seven members served in the army, while Suga fulfilled his duty as a social service agent, an alternative form of military service.
Jin, the oldest BTS member, was discharged in June 2024. J-Hope was discharged in October.
In South Korea, all able-bodied men aged 18 to 28 are required by law to perform 18-21 months of military service under a conscription system meant to deter aggression from rival North Korea.
The law gives special exemptions to athletes, classical and traditional musicians, and ballet and other dancers if they have obtained top prizes in certain competitions and are assessed to have enhanced national prestige. K-pop stars and other entertainers aren’t subject to such privileges.
However, in 2020, BTS postponed their service until age 30 after South Korea’s National Assembly revised its Military Service Act, allowing K-pop stars to delay their enlistment until age 30.
There was heated public debate in 2022 over whether to offer special exemptions of mandatory military service for BTS members, until the group’s management agency announced in October 2022 that all seven members would fulfill their duties.
AP Music Writer Maria Sherman reported from New York.
FILE - K-pop band BTS members Jimin, right, and Jung Kook salute after being discharged from a mandatory military service in Yeoncheon, South Korea, Wednesday, June 11, 2025. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)
FILE - K-pop band BTS members RM, left, and V react after being discharged from a mandatory military service in Chuncheon, South Korea, Tuesday, June 10, 2025. (AP Photo/Ahn Young-joon, File)
FILE - Members of BTS perform at the Times Square New Year's Eve celebration in New York on Dec. 31, 2019. (Photo by Ben Hider/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - BTS poses in the press room with the awards for favorite pop duo or group, favorite pop song for "Butter," and artist of the year at the American Music Awards on Sunday, Nov. 21, 2021, at Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. (Photo by Jordan Strauss/Invision/AP, File)
FILE - Suga, a member of South Korean K-pop band BTS, poses for photographers ahead of a press conference to introduce their new single "Butter" in Seoul, South Korea on May 21, 2021. (AP Photo/Lee Jin-man, File)
FILE - Korean pop band BTS accepts the award for top duo group at the Billboard Music Awards on May 1, 2019, in Las Vegas. (Photo by Chris Pizzello/Invision/AP, File)
A Ukrainian drone attack in southwestern Russia killed two people and parts of Ukraine went without power following Russian assaults on energy infrastructure, authorities said Saturday, as U.S.-led peace talks were about to restart on Sunday.
Foreign policy advisers from the U.S., Ukraine and Germany, among others, will meet in Berlin, German news agency dpa reported. Germany is set to host Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy on Monday, part of efforts by European leaders to steer the negotiations.
For months, American officials have tried to navigate the demands of each side as U.S. President Donald Trump presses for a swift end to Russia’s war and grows increasingly exasperated by delays. The search for possible compromises has run into major obstacles, including the possession of Ukraine's eastern Donbas region, mostly occupied by Russia but parts of which remain under Ukrainian control.
The drone attack in Russia's Saratov region damaged a residential building and several windows were also blown out at a kindergarten and clinic, said Gov. Roman Busargin. Russia’s Defense Ministry said it had shot down 41 Ukrainian drones over Russian territory overnight.
In Ukraine, Russia launched overnight drone and missile strikes on five Ukrainian regions, targeting energy and port infrastructure. Ukrainian Interior Minister Ihor Klymenko said that over a million people were without electricity.
Zelenskyy said Russia had sent over 450 drones and 30 missiles into Ukraine overnight.
An attack on the Black Sea city of Odesa caused grain silos to catch fire at the port, Ukrainian deputy prime minister and reconstruction minister Oleksiy Kuleba said. Two people were wounded in attacks on the wider Odesa region, according to regional head Oleh Kiper.
Kyiv and its Western allies say Russia is trying to cripple the Ukrainian power grid and deny civilians access to heat, light and running water for a fourth consecutive winter, in what Ukrainian officials call “weaponizing” the cold.
On the front lines, Ukrainian forces said Saturday that the northern part of the critical city of Pokrovsk was under Ukrainian control, despite Russia's claims earlier this month that it had taken full control of the city. The Associated Press was not able to independently verify the claims.
The latest round of attacks came after Kremlin adviser Yuri Ushakov said Friday that Russian police and national guard will stay on in eastern Ukraine’s Donbas and oversee the industry-rich region, even if a peace settlement ends the war. It underscores Moscow’s ambition to maintain its presence in Donbas postwar. Ukraine is likely to reject such a stance as U.S.-led negotiations drag on.
Moscow will give its blessing to a ceasefire only after Ukraine’s forces have withdrawn from the front line, Ushakov said in comments published in Russian business daily Kommersant.
Ukraine has consistently refused to cede the region to Russia, especially as parts remain under its control.
In other developments, around 480 people were evacuated Saturday from a train traveling between the Polish city of Przemysl and Kyiv after police received a call concerning a threat on the train, Karolina Kowalik, a spokesperson for the Przemysl police, told The Associated Press. Nobody was hurt and she didn't elaborate on the threat.
Polish authorities are on high alert since multiple attempts to disrupt trains on the line linking Warsaw to the Ukrainian border, including the use of explosives in November, with Polish authorities saying they have evidence Russia was behind it.
Follow AP’s coverage of the war in Ukraine at https://apnews.com/hub/russia-ukraine
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits attend drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits rest after drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits rest after drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this photo provided by Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade press service, recruits attend drills at a training ground in the Zaporizhzhia region, Ukraine, Friday, Dec. 12, 2025. (Andriy Andriyenko/Ukraine's 65th Mechanized Brigade via AP)
In this grab from a video provided by the Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine on Friday, Dec 12, 2025, Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelenskyy records a video at the road entering of Kupiansk, Ukraine. (Press Service Of The President Of Ukraine via AP)
