SEOUL, Jan. 30 (Yonhap) – The defense ministry said Tuesday it is not considering conscripting women for the country’s mandatory military service after the issue received renewed attention in a campaign pledge ahead of the April general elections.

On Monday, the leader of the newly created Reformative Conservative Party, Lee Jun-seok, proposed having women serve in the military first if they want to apply for jobs as police officers or firefighter as a campaign pledge.

When asked about the possibility of female conscription, the ministry’s spokesperson Jeon Ha-kyou denied considering it.