By Jung Sung-ki
Staff Reporter
A three-star general is likely to assume command of the U.S. Force Korea (USFK) after the planned command rearrangements designed to shift the roles of American forces here to naval- and air-centric supporting ones are completed, sources said Monday.
Currently, a four-star Army general is in charge of the 28,500-member USFK. The commander also serves as chief of the ROK-U.S. Combined Forces Command (CFC) and the U.N. Command (UNC).
But the four-star general will move to the U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC) in Hawaii by 2012 when South Korea takes back wartime operational control (OPCON) of its forces from the USFK, as part of a realignment of U.S. forces in Asia and the Pacific, they said. The general then would likely take charge of all U.S. Army forces in the Asia-Pacific region.
"South Korea wants a four-star general to take command of the USFK even after the OPCON transition in 2012 as it is not only of U.S. strategic importance on the peninsula but also deals with a stronger ROK-U.S. alliance," an American military source here told The Korea Times.
"The U.S. is positive about this but is still considering various options, including moving the four-star general from Seoul to Honolulu, in consideration of the post OPCON-transition command structure."
An official for Seoul's Joint Chiefs of Staff said the USFK has not given its official position on whether or not the new U.S. military command, or Korea Command (KORCOM), to be established by 2012 will have a four-star general, declining to elaborate.
USFK officials here denied the move.
"KORCOM will have a four-star commander even after the 2012 transition," a USFK official said on condition of anonymity.
He said a recent decision to keep the three-star-level 8th U.S. Army in South Korea also proves the higher USFK commander will retain his four-star position.
The South Korean and U.S. militaries have been on track to make the change from the decades-old U.S.-led combined forces mechanism to a South Korean-led joint command system following a 2007 deal. Under the envisaged system, both sides will launch separate theater commands in 2012 after deactivating the CFC.
South Korean forces will take the lead of key combat missions while the U.S. military will focus on a naval- and air support.
The USFK will be transformed into rapid deployment troops that can be dispatched to other parts of the world where the U.S. faces hostilities.
Earlier, a Hawaii-based daily newspaper, the Honolulu Advertiser, reported the change in the USFK's commander status.
"Sometime in 2012, or shortly thereafter, an American sergeant major in Seoul will haul down the flag of the four-star general who commands U.S. forces in South Korea," the newspaper said Jan. 10.
The newspaper revealed the USFK troop strength has recently downed to 24,700.
“Senior U.S. officers have told the South Koreans they must be responsible for their own defense against communist North Korea, and the departure of the top U.S. general reflects that,” it said.
The four-star general in charge of the USARPAC will work with the four-star officers commanding Navy and Air Force components of the Pacific Command, the report said.
In addition, Pacific Command will have a top Army officer to deal with other armies in Asia and the Pacific.
gallantjung@koreatimes.co.kr
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