Will Verification Exercises for Transfer of Wartime Operational Control Be Possible Next Year?

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] It is reported that South Korea and the United States are coordinating the timing of the Future Combined Forces Command (CFC) Full Operational Capability (FOC) verification exercise for next year's wartime operational control (OPCON) transfer. However, the spread of the new COVID-19 variant, Omicron, is not subsiding, which is expected to be a variable.

According to a government official on the 10th, General Won In-chul, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, and General Paul LaCamera, Commander of the ROK-US Combined Forces Command, held a private meeting the day before to discuss the timing of the FOC verification exercise for next year. This was the first official meeting between the ROK-US military authorities to discuss the OPCON FOC since the 53rd Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) held in Seoul on the 2nd.

At the meeting, the South Korean military proposed conducting the FOC verification exercise in the first half of the year, but it was concluded that further discussions with the U.S. side would follow. The FOC verification exercise corresponds to the second stage of the three-stage verification process to evaluate the wartime operational control capability of the Future Combined Forces Command, commanded by a South Korean general (four-star general) after the OPCON transfer.

The FOC evaluation, a key procedure for the OPCON transfer, has been continuously delayed due to COVID-19 and subtle differences in positions between South Korea and the U.S. during the Trump administration. However, if it is decided to conduct the FOC verification exercise in the first half of next year, the OPCON transfer work, which will be inherited by the next government, is expected to proceed more rapidly.

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