Assembly Panel Passes Bill on Rapid Dispatch of Peacekeeping Troops

By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter

The National Assembly Judiciary Committee passed a motion Thursday to improve the nation's ability to response to a United Nations request for the dispatch of peacekeeping forces (PKFs).

The motion, which had already been passed the Assembly Foreign Affairs Committee, calls for allowing the government to decide on the location, troop level, and equipment of PKF deployments before getting parliamentary approval.

The motion calls for deploying up to 1,000 troops.

Under the current law, the government is required to obtain parliamentary approval when it wants to send a PKF overseas. Under the system, it typically takes six to seven months to train the troops and receive approval from the Assembly, which critics say is too long to meet U.N. requirements.

The motion is expected to be ratified during the plenary session, as ruling and opposition lawmakers agree on the need for a system facilitating rapid PKF deployment.

``So far, discussions on the deployment have to be made after parliamentary approval. Therefore, the schedule has been frequently delayed and South Korea has failed to secure favorable locations for its troops as other countries have taken them first,'' Rep. Song Min-soon of the main opposition Democratic Party said.

Since his inauguration early last year, President Lee Myung-bak has pledged to raise Korea's international profile by participating in more peacekeeping operations (PKO) around the world.

Seoul is the 10th-largest donor to U.N. PKOs, but its troop contribution is only the 39th largest.

Currently, some 400 South Korean troops are taking part in U.N. operations, including the 350-strong Dongmyeong Unit stationed in Lebanon.

gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr

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