S. Korea-U.S. joint command to remain in Seoul until OPCON transfer: sources

Good news here though this seems like a premature release.  This should have been unveiled at the Security Consultative Meeting next month. But this is good for the ROK/US Alliance and the combined war fighting capabilities if true.

But I wonder if this senior Seoul government official leaked this as a trial balloon or because he is trying to undermine the agreement.  There could have been a better combined strategic communications plan to mitigate some of the political fallout that will likely occur in the ROK.  I will not go into my usual diatribe about the command relations but at least Yonhap did not once mention USFK.  

   "The two sides have agreed to maintain the CFC in Yongsan, where it is currently located, until we regain the operational control (OPCON) from the U.S.," a senior Seoul government source said, requesting anonymity.

   The CFC, which has the command over South Korean and U.S. troops stationed here, was to be disbanded upon Seoul's OPCON transfer in December 2015, but a bilateral agreement to delay the transfer has led the CFC to remain intact.

S. Korea-U.S. joint command to remain in Seoul until OPCON transfer: sources

http://m.yna.co.kr/mob2/en/contents_en.jsp?domain=3&ctype=A&site=0100000000&cid=AEN20140904008100315&mobile

2014-09-04 17:37

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   South Korea and the United States have agreed to make the Combined Forces Command (CFC) exempt from their plan to relocate U.S. troops until Seoul retakes wartime command of its forces from Washington, sources here said Thursday.

   Seoul and Washington had been at odds over whether to move the CFC headquarters and its affiliated forces to Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of the capital, in accordance with their 2004 agreement to move the Yongsan Garrison, the sprawling U.S. military headquarters in central Seoul, and the 2nd Infantry Division stationed north of Seoul to the southern town by the end of 2016.

   "The two sides have agreed to maintain the CFC in Yongsan, where it is currently located, until we regain the operational control (OPCON) from the U.S.," a senior Seoul government source said, requesting anonymity.

   The CFC, which has the command over South Korean and U.S. troops stationed here, was to be disbanded upon Seoul's OPCON transfer in December 2015, but a bilateral agreement to delay the transfer has led the CFC to remain intact.

   "Albeit temporarily, we, in fact, accepted the U.S. request to stay them in Seoul. The U.S. has proposed the CFC be an exception for the relocation plan, citing smooth policy coordination between the allies," the source said.

   "Though the U.S. wants to have most of its forces under the CFC stay in Yongsan, we have conveyed our position that it would not be possible. Discussions are under way about the size of the remaining forces," he added.

   Their retainment is expected to spark controversy and opposition from the public, as it will affect the South Korean government's plan to turn the vast site in central Seoul into a public park. The government itself has reiterated that the relocation plan will be pushed forward as scheduled "as a pledge to the people."

   "After the decision to delay the OPCON transfer, where to put the CFC became a matter of reality. We are now striving to find ways to meet different demands and conditions," said another government source who is well-versed in the issue.

   Denying the report, however, Seoul's defense ministry said it will "seek the best ways to strengthen the joint defense posture with the U.S. while pushing for the relocation plan as scheduled."

   South Korea handed over control of its forces to the U.S. during the 1950-53 Korean War to defend against invading troops from North Korea. Peacetime control of its forces was returned in 1994, and South Korea is currently scheduled to get back operational control in the event of war in December 2015.

   But last year, Seoul asked for a delay in the OPCON transfer after North Korea conducted its third nuclear test, saying the security situation on the peninsula was markedly different from when the transfer was agreed upon a few years ago.

   The allies are scheduled to decide on the timeframe and conditions of the transfer by October, when the defense chiefs will hold their annual meeting in Washington. Many expect South Korea to retake it between 2020 and 2022.

   By Oh Seok-min
   SEOUL, Sept. 4 (Yonhap)
   graceoh@yna.co.kr
(END)

Again, if anyone wants to talk about OPCON transfer I think they should first have to be able to explain the ROK and US command relationships in Korea.  I will bet the number of press and pundits who can do so can be counted on one hand (go ahead and prove me wrong - I will happily administer a test to any member of the press or pundit corps).

But on a less sarcastic note what the action officers need to come up with in time for the Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) is an understandable way to explain how both nations exercise co-equal operational control of the ROK/US Combined Forces Command  (ROK/US CFC) through the Military Committee.

The SCM needs to come clean with the ROK and US press, pundits, politicians, and people.  The whole OPCON transfer issue was a misnomer.  There is no provision or process to "transfer wartime OPCON" to the ROK.  This is a much different situation than in 1994 when "peacetime OPCON" was "returned" to the ROK.  In actuality what happened in 1994 was a normalization of the military relationship of ROK forces to the ROK/US CFC to equal the same relationship as US forces.  It was normalized in this way.  The ROK JCS and US Forces Korea each are "force providers" to the ROK/US CFC, meaning when directed by their nation's command authorities they will provide forces to the ROK/US CFC and the ROK/US CFC will exercise operational control of those forces to accomplish the mission.  This only happens when designated.  Prior to 1994 ROK forces were under the OPCON of theROK/US CFC.   However, in terms of wartime OPCON the only way that can be directly exercised by the ROK is to dis-establish the ROK/US CFC and have the ROK and US establish separate war fighting commands which will undo sixty plus years of perfecting combined operations capabilities to address very real threats from the north (both war and collapse).

What the SCM should consider announcing is that the decision to keep the ROK/US CFC intact in critically important to the strategic interests of both nations to ensure they have the most capable war fighting command to ensure deterrence, defense, the ability to defeat the nKPA if attacked as well as to conduct the full spectrum of operations necessary to deal with regime collapse.  The SCM should admit that the OPCON transfer issue was a mistake built upon a shaky foundation during a period of mutual disdain and distrust by both nations (rising anti-American sentiment in the ROK and the desire by the US SECDEF to divert US forces from Korean responsibilities to support the Global War on Terrorism).  These conditions no longer exist and thus the initial "rationale" (or assumptions perhaps) for OPCON transfer are no longer valid.  Therefore discussion about alliance military capabilities should be focused on enhancing the combined capabilities to more effectively accomplish the missions directed by the Military Committee.

Second, the SCM should announce that USFK and 8th US Army will relocate to Pyongtaek (Camp Humphreys) when facilities construction is complete in accordance with the Land Partnership Plan.  However, the ROK/US CFC will remain in Seoul.

Third, when USFK and 8th Army relocate, Yongsan Army Garrison will be disestablished and the  garrison will be turned over to the ROK military control.  (It would be good for the ROK to be able to rename the garrison) The small number of US members of the ROK/US CFC will remain in Seoul and live as tenants on the renamed ROK military installation.

The perhaps after October the ROK/US CFC can remove the distraction of the past 11 years and get on with the important business of focusing on accomplishing the alliance objectives.   The bottom line; however, for the ROK and US is that both nations always retain command of their forces, both nations determine when they want to provide their forces to the ROK/US CFC and the ROK/US CFC takes its strategic direction and guidance from the Military Committee which is made up of members from both nations' National Command and Military Authorities.  And the real bottom line is that the US DOES NOT have overall operational control of ROK forces just as  the ROK does not have overall operational control of  US forces.

Korea, U.S. to hold second OPCON meeting this week

http://www.koreaherald.com/view.php?ud=20140805000657

Published : 2014-08-05 20:50
Updated : 2014-08-05 20:50

South Korea and the United States will hold a second round of talks this week on delaying the planned transfer of the wartime operational control of South Korean troops from Washington to Seoul, the Pentagon said Monday.

In April, South Korean President Park Geun-hye and U.S. President Barack Obama decided that the timeline for the transition of OPCON, currently slated for 2015, can be reconsidered. They agreed to continue to work to determine the “appropriate timing and conditions for the transition of OPCON.”

Under the agreement, the two sides held their first “Executive Session” on the issue between South Korea’s Deputy Defense Minister Yoo Jeh-Seung and U.S. Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for East Asia David Helvey on June 16-17 in Seoul.

A second round of talks will be held in Washington on Wednesday and Thursday, the Pentagon said.

“The ROK Ministry of National Defense and U.S. Department of Defense will continue consultations on this issue in the lead-up to and in preparation for this year’s Security Consultative Meeting in October,” the Pentagon said, referring to the annual defense ministers’ talks between the two countries.

South Korea handed over control of its forces to the U.S. during the 1950-53 Korean War to defend against invading troops from North Korea. Peacetime control of its forces was returned in 1994, and South Korea is currently scheduled to get back OPCON in December 2015.

But last year, Seoul asked for a delay in the OPCON transfer after North Korea conducted its third nuclear test, saying the security situation on the peninsula was markedly different from when the transfer was agreed upon a few years ago.

The two countries are basically in agreement on putting off the transfer, and the defense ministers’ meeting set for October is expected to determine by how much it should be pushed back. (Yonhap)

U.S. Wants to Keep Combined Forces Command in Seoul

This should not be unexpected.  If the ROK/US Combined Forces Command is going to remain in tact there are only two options.  One it remains where it is.  Two, all the  Korean officers assigned to ROK/US CFC would have to move to Pyongtaek and would out of Camp Humphreys (though as I understand it there is no facility there for the ROK/US CFC because with the mythical OPCON transfer there would be no ROK/US CFC.

Yes there will potentially be domestic political fallout in Korea.  My recommendation is when USFK and 8th Army move out of Yongsan to Camp Humphreys that Yongsan Army Garrison be returned to Korean military control.  Since only the ROK/US Combined Forces Command would remain the US personnel and the US supporting units assigned to the ROK/US CFC could remain as tenants on the ROK military installation. A formal turnover ceremony would mark the end of US foreign occupation of Yongsan (which has been previously occupied throughout history by the Japanese, Chinese and even Mongol militaries back in the 13th Century I believe - of course we should keep in mind that Yongsan was/is outside of Seoul proper but the growth of Seoul after the Korean War has subsumed it thus making it appear that the US is occupying the real estate in the city of Seoul)

Of course this is not a US military decision as the land of Yongsan is controlled by the US Embassy (and there are embassy facilities on Yongsan to include embassy housing); however, it would be wise for the US to consider such a move. Because after all one of the main reasons for moving US forces out of Yongsan is due to the growth of anti-American sentiment in 2002.  See one of Secretary Rumsfeld's "snowflakes" pasted below this article.  He recognized the need to move US forces out of Yongsan (i.e., Yongsan is a red flag and he wanted to change the US footprint in Korea).  Approximately 3 weeks after this snowflake the emissaries from President -Elect Roh Moo-hyun met with Secretary Rumsfeld and with no US interagency coordination nor coordination with the US commander in Korea or the Pacific, he informed them that he was going to move all US forces (to include 2d Infantry Division south of the Han River and out of north Korean artillery range).  This event was the beginning of the wartime OPCON transfer process (or debacle) which makes no military sense given the threats and which wasted countless man hours of ROK and US Staff officers over the past 12 years.   When the command could have been focusing on evolving the ROK/US CFC to the next level of readiness and proficiency a large part of the command was wasting time building plans and briefings for no good strategic or operational reasons because they actually weakened the military capabilities of the alliance.

This link should take you to the snowflake at the Rumsfeld Papers web site (http://papers.rumsfeld.com/)

http://papers.rumsfeld.com/library/default.asp?zoom_page=1&zoom_per_page=10&zoom_and=0&zoom_sort=0&zoom_query=Korea%20Yongsan%20Garrison%20red%20flag

or this one:  http://library.rumsfeld.com/doclib/sp/1068/2002-12-09%20to%20Doug%20Feith%20et%20al%20re%20South%20Korea.pdf#search="Korea Yongsan Garrison red flag"

U.S. Wants to Keep Combined Forces Command in Seoul

http://english.chosun.com/site/data/html_dir/2014/07/14/2014071401646.html?Dep0=twitter

After an agreement between Seoul and Washington to push back the handover of wartime operational control from December 2015, the U.S. military has reportedly asked the government here to keep the Combined Forces Command in Seoul. 

The CFC is currently based inside the U.S. Army garrison in Yongsan in central Seoul. But the U.S. Forces Korea headquarters is scheduled to be relocated to Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province by 2016. 

"The U.S. recently brought up the possibility of keeping the CFC in Seoul," a government source said Sunday. "They believe that having the CFC in Seoul would be advantageous in terms of cooperation with our Defense Ministry and Joint Chiefs of Staff in responding to emergency situations." 

Government and military officials here seem inclined to accept the request given the military necessity and symbolic importance of keeping the CFC in the capital. But they are concerned about public outcry since that would make the relocation plan incomplete. 

The CFC is to be dismantled when the U.S. transfers wartime operational control of Korean troops to Seoul. The transfer was originally scheduled for April 17, 2012 under an agreement with the U.S. by the Roh Moo-hyun administration. It was then postponed until Dec. 1, 2015 by the Lee Myung-bak government. In April this year, the two sides agreed to delay it again during a meeting with President Park Geun-hye and her counterpart Barack Obama. 

Korea and the U.S. will decide on the new date and conditions of the transfer when their defense ministers meet in October.

englishnews@chosun.com / Jul. 14, 2014 12:06 KST

An excellent and well deserved honor for General Thurman.

However, I have to again call attention to the misinformation about the so-called "OPCON Transfer."  The only way for the so-called "OPCON Transfer" to occur is through the elimination of the ROK/US Combined Forces Command.  

The new commander comes at a critical time for the alliance between Washington and Seoul, with major changes looming over the location of the American base and the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON). 

As Pyongyang continues to advance its weapons program following its third nuclear test, the two nations have been discussing whether to delay the scheduled transfer of OPCON to South Korea in December 2015. 

Let me offer an alternative proposal to the above.  We should consider that one of the reasons for the discussion of delay may be because the ROK leadership is concerned about the sustained US military commitment to the ROK.  The proposals for rotational US forces combined with the fiscal constraints may give the ROK leaders pause because one of the simplest ways t save money would be to halt rotations and not deploy the rotational forces to the Peninsula.  Furthermore, ROK Generals are concerned with the loss of unity of command when the alliance shifts to separate war fighting commands.  Rather than delay "OPCON Transfer" consider the following steps:

Maintain the ROK/US Combined Forces Command and put a ROK General in command.   

Keep the ROK/US CFC at Yongsan; however, turn over Yongsan garrison to the ROK military and maintain the ROK/US CFC  as well as the UN Command as tenant units. 

Commit to reestablishing a rotation presence of US ground combat forces on the DMZ conducting routine patrolling integrated into the ROK division command structure. 

I could provide additional details and the pros and cons of the above but I have done so before and I will again in the future.

V/R

Dave

Outgoing USFK commander receives top military award in S. Korea

2013/09/26 03:44

By Kim Eun-jung

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/search1/2603000000.html?cid=AEN20130926009900315

SEOUL, Sept. 26 (Yonhap) -- Gen. James Thurman, the outgoing commander of U.S. Forces Korea, on Thursday received a top military award from the local government for successfully leading American troops in defending South Korea amid heightened tension with North Korea.

President Park Geun-hye granted the Order of National Security Merit's Tongil Medal to Thurman in a ceremony, which was attended by South Korean Defense Minister Kim Kwan-jin and other top commanders.

"I am deeply honored and humbled to serve in the Republic of Korea with the great ROK-U.S. combined joint team. The mutual trust, common values and commitment to security and prosperity are evident in the vitality and stability of this great nation," Thurman said during the ceremony held at the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae.

"We will never forget that a terrible war was placed upon this nation, but the South Korean people have risen to be a world leader," he said. "We will continue to focus on readiness for the defense and stability of the Korean Peninsula at all times."


Park thanked Thurman for his contributions to the development of the two countries' alliance as she praised him for his leadership and dedication to the security of the Korean Peninsula.

"As you all know very well, Commander Thurman's time in office was a very difficult period in inter-Korean relations and in the surrounding region," she said, citing North Korea's third nuclear test in February and a series of provocations as well as leadership changes in Northeast Asia.

"I think we were all very lucky to have Commander Thurman at such a serious time," she said.

Gen. Curtis Scaparrotti, a veteran commander who served combat tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, will officially replace Thurman in a change-of-command ceremony slated for early October, military officials said. 

(Continued at the link below)

http://english.yonhapnews.co.kr/search1/2603000000.html?cid=AEN20130926009900315