Minister Shin Won-sik: "Leadership Removal Operation is the Official Term"

Explanation on the Criticism of the National Assembly Defense Committee's Mention of Decapitation Operation

On the 21st, Defense Minister Shin Won-sik appeared on a broadcast and addressed criticism regarding his mention of the 'decapitation operation,' stating that "the official term is leadership elimination operation."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Minister Shin appeared at the National Assembly's National Defense Committee briefing that day, responding to a question from Democratic Party lawmaker Ki Dong-min, who asked, "Words often provoke anger, but what does the decapitation operation mean?" He replied accordingly. He added, "(The decapitation operation) is a commonly used term meaning the elimination of enemy leadership, but it is not an official term of our military."

Regarding whether this operation is reflected in the military's operational plans, he said, "I am limited in providing detailed information about operational plans." When asked if it was appropriate for the minister to use the term 'decapitation operation,' he responded, "Because the (broadcast host) asked the question." When lawmaker Ki pressed again, "Is it an appropriate expression?" Shin trailed off, saying, "It's not that it's inappropriate."

When Minister Shin was pointed out that "verbal attacks leading to small-scale localized conflicts cause harm to the people," he stated, "Our KMPR (Massive Punishment and Retaliation) is actually an operation to eliminate enemy leadership." He continued, "Typically, deterrence is based on mutually assured destruction through nuclear weapons, but we do not have nuclear weapons," adding, "North Korea is a dynastic state, so the safety of the enemy leadership holds much greater value than the mass casualties of North Korean citizens."

He further explained, "The combination of traditional U.S. nuclear forces and our conventional high-power forces can enhance the completeness of deterrence," adding, "The main concept of this operation is KMPR, and the public often uses the term 'decapitation' in a general sense. On that day, the anchor asked that question, so I explained it as having the same meaning."

Earlier, on the 18th, Minister Shin appeared on MBN's 'News 7' and was asked, "Can you conduct decapitation operation training or deploy additional strategic assets that Kim Jong-un fears the most?" He responded, "It is difficult to speak publicly about decapitation (operation training)," but also stated, "Both are being considered as options."

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