By Lee Tae-hoon
Questions are lingering over a decision to pull out the Marines from a regular military drill conducted twice a year in waters near the country’s easternmost islets of Dokdo.
Korea is scheduled to hold a four-day biannual military drill starting Friday without mobilizing Marines for the first time since the exercises began in 1986.
Cheong Wa Dae officials claim that the controversial decision was made because President Lee Myung-bak’s unprecedented visit to Dokdo on Aug. 10 delivered a sufficient message to Tokyo over Korea’s resolve to maintain its sovereignty over the remote islets.
“Too much is as bad as too little,” a senior Cheong Wa Dae official said.
He said Seoul decided to cancel the planned deployment of the Marines to avoid unnecessary attention of the international community, to which Japan is appealing to settle the Dokdo issue in an international court by claiming it as a disputed territory.
Since regaining its independence from Japan in 1945, Korea has maintained effective control over the rocky islets that Tokyo illegally annexed in 1905 to set up a military observation post.
Nevertheless, many explanations from officials at Cheong Wa Dae contradict those from military officials.
Cheong Wa Dae officials claim that the government decided to cancel the Marines’ participation on Aug. 30 at a meeting of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Defense Ministry.
Military insiders, however, refute this, saying the decision was abruptly made on Sept. 3.
“No such decision was made on Aug. 30,” a senior official of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) said. “The JCS was unaware of the decision until Sept. 3.”
A Navy official said the decision was abruptly made based on political considerations and that there was no room for the military to have a say.
He also noted that Cheong Wa Dae is misleading the public, saying the Marine Corps carried out a landing exercise only once on Dokdo in the East Sea due to inclement weather and other issues.
“Marines regularly have long taken part in the Dokdo defense drill and have successfully carried out a landing exercise at least several times,” he said, noting that the military conducted the drill under a scenario that Japan invades the rocky islets.
Some observers speculate that Seoul decided not to mobilize the drill in response to Japan’s call to cancel the upcoming Dokdo drill.
Japanese Ambassador to Korea Masatoshi Muto reportedly made the demand in a meeting with Korean officials on Sept. 31.
Meanwhile, some military officials raised the possibility that Seoul downsized the Dokdo drill because Washington continues to voice concerns about the growing tension over Dokdo between two of its closest allies, Korea and Japan.
The upcoming drill will be carried out under a new scenario that Japanese civilians attempt to make an illegal landing on the remote islets. The Coast Guard will lead the drill with the military providing a supporting role.