New Membership of Germany in the UN Command Member States

First New Recruit in 11 Years Since Italy's Accession
Discussion on Strengthening the UN Command Multinational Military Organization

Germany has newly joined the United Nations Command (UNC). Germany is the first new member of the UNC in 11 years since Italy withdrew and rejoined in 2013, and it can be seen as the first new member since the designation "UNC member state" began to carry international political implications.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

According to the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs on the 2nd, during the Korean War, Germany was divided into East and West Germany, and neither East nor West Germany was a member of the United Nations. This was because Germany, as a defeated Axis power that had surrendered only five months earlier, had no place in the UN, which was established in October 1945 by the Allied powers to commemorate the end of World War II. However, West Germany sought to assist Korea and the UN forces by sending medical personnel toward the end of the Korean War in 1953. After obtaining approval from the United States, the representative of the UN forces, and taking time to organize the medical team, the medical personnel arrived at Busan Port in 1954, the year following the armistice.

From May 1954 to March 1959, Germany operated a Red Cross hospital in Busan, treating 227,250 patients and assisting in the delivery of 6,025 mothers. The dispatched medical personnel also played a role in training Korean doctors and nurses and transferring medical technology. However, Germany was not included as a "Korean War medical support country" because the medical support was provided after the armistice agreement was signed, and it was only in June 2018, 64 years after dispatching medical personnel, that the Moon Jae-in administration added Germany to the list.

The UNC had been largely symbolic for a considerable period since the 1970s, only managing the armistice agreement, so membership status had little significance. However, since around 2014, the United States began revitalizing the UNC to enhance strategic flexibility in countering China, Russia, and North Korea, aiming to strengthen it as an independent multinational military organization. This led to serious discussions about the role and scale of the UNC.

Germany's UNC membership was discussed starting in 2019. At that time, the United States sought to include Germany as part of UNC expansion, and Germany also pursued this. However, the Moon Jae-in administration blocked Germany's membership. Since UNC participating countries are dispatched to support Korea's exercise of self-defense rights at Korea's request, Korea's consent is a prerequisite for new dispatches, and the lack of prior consultation was the official reason for opposition. However, many analysts believe that the Moon administration, which aimed to replace the armistice agreement with a peace treaty, was not favorable to expanding the UNC, a representative organization of the armistice system.

For peace negotiations with North Korea, it was necessary that the UNC, which North Korea persistently demanded to dismantle, not be highlighted. Moreover, at that time, the U.S. side hoped not only Germany but also Japan, where the UNC rear base is located, to participate in the UNC. Therefore, the Moon administration rejected both Japan and Germany. With the inauguration of the Yoon Suk-yeol administration in 2022, the policy shifted toward emphasizing the role of the UNC. The background was the judgment that the UNC, which can automatically assist Korea in emergencies, serves as a deterrent to North Korea's invasion and thus benefits national security.

The first "Korea-UNC Defense Ministers' Meeting," held last November with defense ministers and representatives from Korea and UNC member countries, is a good example of the government's positive view of the UNC and its expanded role. Last month, President Yoon met with German Chancellor Olaf Scholz and expressed congratulations and welcome for Germany's decision to join the UNC.

The change in the international security situation caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine also lends credibility to the analysis that it played a role in Germany's decision to join the UNC. With North Korea supplying weapons to Russia's war, security on the Korean Peninsula and in Europe became interconnected, creating a situation where Germany, a key member of the European Union (EU), had to consider Northeast Asian security as well. At the same time, there was an appropriate opportunity in the form of UNC membership.

There is also hope that Germany's UNC membership will lead to further expansion of the UNC and its development into a permanent security consultation body. Some foresee that the UNC Defense Ministers' Meeting could become a regular multilateral international security discussion forum, similar to the Asia Security Conference, also known as the Shangri-La Dialogue, held in Singapore.

The existing UNC member countries include 14 nations that sent combat troops during the Korean War: the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, T?rkiye, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand, the Netherlands, Colombia, Greece, New Zealand, Belgium, France, and South Africa, as well as Norway, Denmark, and Italy, which sent medical support units, totaling 17 countries. Germany has become the 18th member. Among the 22 countries that sent troops or medical support during the Korean War, Ethiopia, Luxembourg, Sweden, and India are not members. Korea is not a UNC member as it was a party to the war.

Meanwhile, at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, where the United Nations Command and United States Forces Korea are jointly located, a ceremony commemorating Germany's UNC membership was held with German Defense Minister Boris Pistorius in attendance.