Three Golden Opportunities Missed by Military Leadership

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] As a result of re-testing for COVID-19 among the personnel of the 34th Cheonghae Unit who returned to Korea, 19 new confirmed cases were added, bringing the cumulative total to 266, which is more than the 247 confirmed cases before arrival. This accounts for 88% of the 301 personnel. In this re-test, 23 tested negative, but since there are 12 people subject to re-testing, the number of confirmed cases may increase further. Currently, the 34th unit personnel arrived at Seongnam Seoul Airport in Gyeonggi Province by military transport plane the day before and are receiving treatment and resting while being isolated in various facilities such as civilian and Defense Language Institute life treatment centers, the Armed Forces Daejeon Hospital, and the Armed Forces Capital Hospital. As the cumulative number of confirmed cases increases, criticism is growing over the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff missing three golden opportunities due to misjudgments.

◆ The First Golden Opportunity Missed by the Cheonghae Unit= According to the 'Emergency Return Progress and Future Measures of the 34th Cheonghae Unit' report submitted by the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff to the National Assembly on the 20th, the first cold symptom case in the Cheonghae Unit occurred on the 2nd. This was the first golden opportunity to prevent the spread. However, due to inadequate response, the number of cold symptom cases increased to 18 by the 5th, and surged to 78 by the 9th. By the 10th, the cumulative number of cold symptom cases reached 95, and only then did the Cheonghae Unit report by phone to the Joint Chiefs of Staff that multiple cold symptom cases had occurred. At that time, the Cheonghae Unit appeared to be following the overseas dispatch unit COVID-19 response guidelines (manual) issued by the Joint Chiefs of Staff last year. The Joint Chiefs of Staff have not disclosed this manual, citing confidentiality.

◆ The Second Golden Opportunity Missed by the Joint Chiefs of Staff= The second golden opportunity was until the 12th. On the 11th, the number of cold symptom cases among Cheonghae Unit personnel rose to 105, but the Joint Chiefs of Staff only became aware of this when the Cheonghae Unit submitted a written report on the 12th. However, the Joint Chiefs of Staff did not report anything to Defense Minister Suh Wook by the 12th. Furthermore, although the Ministry of National Defense issued guidelines in December last year to use 'rapid antigen test kits,' the 34th Cheonghae Unit was supplied with 800 'rapid antibody test kits.' As cold patients surged, the Cheonghae Unit conducted rapid antibody tests on about 40 people on the 10th, all of which tested negative.

◆ The Third Golden Opportunity Missed by the Ministry of National Defense= On the 14th, two suspected pneumonia patients appeared in the Cheonghae Unit and underwent PCR tests, both of which were confirmed positive. This was the first confirmation of a positive case. From the 14th, the Ministry of National Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff activated an integrated situation management task force (TF). Minister Suh only then issued response guidelines, including PCR testing for all 34th unit crew members. On the 15th, four additional infections were confirmed among those tested by PCR. This was four days after the first report of cold symptoms to the Joint Chiefs of Staff. The military leadership neglected the cold symptom situation among the Cheonghae Unit crew and only issued response guidelines belatedly after the PCR results came out. Inside and outside the military, there is criticism that ignoring the vaccination of the Cheonghae Unit despite the announcement of the nationwide vaccination plan ultimately left the unit in a 'vaccine blind spot.' There are also suggestions that cooperation should have been sought from the US Forces Korea commander when the US Forces Korea conducted their first vaccinations in December last year. On the same day, Park Jae-min, Deputy Minister of National Defense, said in a phone interview with CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' regarding the Cheonghae Unit's vaccination, "I think it could have been reviewed more carefully."

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