[2020 National Audit] Conditions to Be Revised and Supplemented if Transfer of Wartime Operational Control Is Delayed

Won In-cheol, the nominee for Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, is delivering opening remarks at the confirmation hearing held at the National Assembly on the 18th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Won In-chul stated that if the schedule for the transfer of wartime operational control is delayed, it may be necessary to revise and supplement the conditions agreed upon by South Korea and the United States. The South Korean government wants to transfer operational control before May 2022, when President Moon Jae-in's term ends, but the transfer process has been delayed due to the spread of the novel coronavirus infection (COVID-19). Some speculate that there might be an attempt to change detailed conditions in line with the transfer timing.

On the 8th, during the National Assembly National Defense Committee's audit of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in response to a related question from Park Sung-jun of the Democratic Party of Korea, Chairman Won said, "We are proceeding based on the conditions officially agreed upon by both South Korea and the United States," adding, "If transferring operational control under those conditions becomes difficult or is excessively delayed, I think there is a need to revise and supplement those parts."

South Korea and the U.S. planned to decide on the transfer of operational control after completing evaluations starting with the first phase, Initial Operational Capability (IOC) verification last year, followed by Full Operational Capability (FOC) verification this year, and Full Mission Capability (FMC) verification next year. However, this year's FOC verification was conducted briefly over two days. The remaining FOC verification will be conducted again early next year.

Chairman Won's remarks imply that if the transfer schedule is delayed, there may be a need to revise or supplement these conditions.

In response to a question from Ahn Kyu-baek of the Democratic Party about "how much each condition has been met," he explained, "We evaluated IOC last year and assessed that the Korean military has secured most of the core military capabilities," adding, "We also evaluate that much of the FOC has been achieved, but this ultimately requires a consensus between South Korea and the U.S."

He explained, "The decision to transfer operational control based on conditions was agreed upon by South Korea and the U.S. at South Korea's request. When setting these conditions, they were agreed upon as achievable by us," adding, "Since some parts involve qualitative evaluation, there may be concerns about delays." He continued, "We are quickly meeting those conditions and building capabilities, so if we conduct FOC verification exercises and set the year (for transfer), from that point, it can be considered a time-based transfer based on the conditions."

Meanwhile, South Korean and U.S. defense authorities will consecutively hold high-level annual military meetings on the 13th and 14th to assess the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and focus on discussions regarding the transfer of wartime operational control. The Ministry of National Defense announced that Minister Suh Wook and U.S. Secretary of Defense Mark Esper will hold the 52nd Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) at the U.S. Department of Defense building in Washington D.C. on the 14th (local time).

The Joint Chiefs of Staff announced that the 45th Military Committee Meeting (MCM) will be held via video conference on the 13th. The results of the MCM discussions will be reported to the SCM. The two countries will discuss major alliance issues at these meetings, including ▲ assessment of the security situation on the Korean Peninsula and policy coordination ▲ promotion of the transfer of wartime operational control based on conditions ▲ strengthening of combined defense posture. A defense ministry official explained that the transfer of operational control is a key agenda item at this meeting.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.