[Reporter’s Notebook] Doubts Arise Over Military Command’s Decisiveness

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] Wholehearted dedication and complete transformation. These are the words Defense Minister Seo Wook used during his five public apologies so far. Until then, there was a painful joke inside and outside the military asking, "Is there any bone left to scrape off?"

After the sixth apology on the 20th, the atmosphere inside and outside the military has become even more serious. Even within the military, doubts have begun to arise about the minister’s decisiveness and the sincerity of his apology. Why is that? Minister Seo operated the integrated situation management TF team of the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff only 12 days after the first cold patient appeared in the Cheonghae Unit. On the 15th, four additional confirmed cases occurred, yet Minister Seo still did not make any special decisions. Eventually, the president stepped in. President Moon Jae-in ordered the deployment of an aerial refueling transport aircraft that day. Only then did the Ministry of National Defense decide to push for the full return of the 34th Cheonghae Unit.

Nevertheless, the Ministry of National Defense only focused on promoting the evacuation operation, claiming it was a prompt countermeasure. They consistently made excuses regarding the Cheonghae Unit’s lack of vaccination. This is a typical attitude of evading responsibility. The president spoke again. At the Cabinet meeting on the 20th, he said, "It is difficult to avoid criticism that the response was complacent." This is the background behind Minister Seo’s sixth public apology. The minister only moves and apologizes when there are presidential orders and reprimands. Can the public really trust the Ministry of National Defense, which should protect the safety of the people through independent decisions and actions in emergencies?

Watching the current Minister of National Defense of the Republic of Korea, I recall an anecdote about a former minister who acted quite differently. Before the first anniversary of the Yeonpyeong Island shelling incident, the former minister sent letters to commanders of each military branch. He said, "When conducting operations, do not ask on-site ‘Should we fire or not?’ but take action first and report later." A commander who worked with him said, "With this one order, frontline commanders gained the freedom to respond to North Korean provocations." Why have Minister Seo and the current military leadership changed so much? Who is it that has made the minister and generals look only to the president’s words, rather than to the people or even what they learned from textbooks?

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