US maintains conditions for South Korea military control transfer
By the AFREEQUE newsroom, based on Voanews
The United States maintains that transferring wartime operational control of allied forces to South Korea depends on conditions agreed between the two countries. The timetable remains undetermined and no transition will take place until the criteria are met, according to a US Department of Defense official cited by Voice of America.
The United States maintains that the transfer to South Korea of operational control of allied forces during wartime on the peninsula can take place only once conditions agreed by both countries have been met, a US Department of Defense official told VOA on Monday. Wartime operational control, or OPCON, refers to the authority responsible for directing military operations during a conflict.
Washington and Seoul adopted a conditions-based approach to arranging the transfer in 2014, and its timetable remains undetermined. South Korea regained peacetime operational control in 1994, but a US general still commands the US-South Korea Combined Forces Command in the event of war, according to VOA.
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung called on Monday for the authority to be transferred back quickly, saying his country’s military capabilities allow it to take greater responsibility for its defence. US General Xavier Brunson, commander of US Forces Korea, said last week, however, that changes in the security situation, including North Korea’s continued development of weapons and recent ballistic activities, had led the allies to review their criteria.
Summary produced with the help of artificial intelligence tools, under AFREEQUE’s editorial responsibility.
