Abrams: "It Is Premature to Predict OPCON Transfer"

Photo by ROK-US Combined Forces Command

[Ministry of National Defense Joint Coverage Team · Asia Economy Military Specialist Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] Robert Abrams, Commander of the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command and Commander of U.S. Forces Korea, said on the 20th regarding the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) between South Korea and the U.S., "It is still too early to predict the timing of the transfer."

In an interview with domestic and foreign media on the occasion of his 2nd anniversary in office, Commander Abrams said about the timing of the ROK-U.S. OPCON transfer, "The media speculates that there are two years left, but I consider that premature."

He also emphasized, "It is inappropriate for me to speculate on the timing of the transfer now," but added, "There is no change in the U.S. policy to transfer OPCON once all conditions are met."

The three conditions for OPCON transfer agreed upon by South Korea and the U.S. in 2015 are: △ securing the ROK military's core military capabilities △ equipping the ROK military with essential initial response capabilities against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats △ a security environment on the Korean Peninsula and in the region that is conducive to the OPCON transfer.

The South Korean government aims to complete the OPCON transfer by May 2022, within President Moon Jae-in's term. However, due to the COVID-19 pandemic and other factors this year, the ROK-U.S. has not completed the verification evaluation of the Full Operational Capability (FOC) of the future combined forces command, which corresponds to the second stage of the three-stage verification process for the OPCON transfer.

In the joint statement of the 52nd ROK-U.S. Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) this year, the ROK and U.S. announced that they will continue the evaluation procedures including the verification of FOC related to the OPCON transfer, but specific details such as the timing of implementation were not included in the statement. Considering the principle-oriented nature of President Biden, there is a high possibility that the prompt OPCON transfer desired by the South Korean government will face difficulties.

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