'저는 그들의 땅을 지키기 위하여 싸웠던 인디안들의 이야기를 기억합니다. 백인들이 그들의 신성한 숲에 도로를 만들기 위하여 나무들을 잘랐습니다. 매일밤 인디안들이 나가서 백인들이 만든 그 길을 해체하면 그 다음 날 백인들이 와서 도로를 다시 짓곤 했습니다. 한동안 그 것이 반복되었습니다. 그러던 어느날, 숲에서 가장 큰 나무가 백인들이 일할 동안 그들 머리 위로 떨어져 말과 마차들을 파괴하고 그들 중 몇몇을 죽였습니다. 그러자 백인들은 떠났고 결코 다시 오지 않았습니다….' (브루스 개그논)





For any updates on the struggle against the Jeju naval base, please go to savejejunow.org and facebook no naval base on Jeju. The facebook provides latest updates.

Thursday, February 25, 2010

Text fwd: 'ROK-US Combined Defense More Effective to Counter NK'

'Kim Tae-young
Defense Minister'



Korea Times
02-24-2010 19:32
'ROK-US Combined Defense More Effective to Counter NK'
By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

Defense Minister Kim Tae-young expressed hope Wednesday that the U.S.-led defense system would stay intact in coming years amid the lingering North Korean military threat.

Referring to the planned transition of operational control (OPCON) of South Korean troops during wartime from the U.S. to Korean commanders in 2012, Kim said the military was putting forth the best efforts to take over OPCON in 2012.

He said the ROK-U.S. combined defense posture would be more effective in defending South Korea for the time being, given the lingering threat posed by North Korean missile and nuclear programs.

"I also hope that the U.S.-led defense scheme will remain further, given the North Korean nuclear and missile threat," Kim said at a lecture hosted by a naval defense research institute in Seoul.

"But the OPCON transfer is a promise between the governments, so if we ask to scrap the agreement, we must give away many things. If not, it's impossible," he said.

The minister anticipated that the year 2012 would be a "complicated" year, referring to North Korea's goal to become a "strong and powerful nation" by that time to mark the 100th birthday of the late North Korean founder, Kim Il-sung, and the planned presidential elections in South Korea and the United States.

Kim said President Lee Myung-bak and other diplomatic and defense officials were trying to deal with the controversy over the OPCON transition, hinting at a possibility of renegotiations with the U.S. government over the issue.

Seoul and Washington agreed in 2007 that Korean commanders would execute independent operational control of their troops during wartime beginning on April 17, 2012, with the U.S. military shifting to an air- and naval-centric supporting role.

The two governments plan to set up their own theater commands after disbanding the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command (CFC).

South Korea voluntarily handed over both peacetime and wartime operational controls to the U.S.-led United Nations Command at the outbreak of the 1950-53 Korean War. The command authority was later transferred to the CFC. Korea took over peacetime control in 1994.

Conservative forces regard the command changes as a U.S. move to reduce its security commitment to South Korea. They argue the smaller role of the U.S. military amid lingering threats posed by North Korea could tip the military balance on the Korean Peninsula.

Many defense experts say the South Korean military will not be able to establish an independent defense posture due to its lack of intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance (ISR) assets until 2012.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr

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