By Jun Ji-hye
The military’s plan to establish a command to be in charge of the Army’s ground operations has been delayed again until the year 2018.
Government sources mainly attributed the postponement to the continuing delay in retaking wartime operational control (OPCON) of South Korean troops from the United States.
Though the government has not officially stated the exact timeline for the plan, it reportedly set 2015 as the year for setting up the new command after two delays since 2010.
“At the end of last year, the Ministry of National Defense set 2018 as the target year to establish the command,” said a source, requesting anonymity.
Another source noted that the authorities probably think that more time is needed for South Korea to secure enough capability to regain the wartime OPCON of its troops from Washington.
The comprehensive plan to reform the military structure to ensure more flexible troop management was designed to merge ROK 1st and 3rd Armies to create the Ground Operations Command that will lead frontline units.
The envisioned command would be tasked with dealing with intelligence and carrying out field operations under the control of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, sources said.
The move to create the new command will reduce the number of four-star generals to seven from the current eight to meet the reform plan aimed at streamlining the military structure and cutting the number of troops from the current 630,000 to 522,000 by 2022.
Last October, Seoul and Washington agreed to delay the schedule for the OPCON transfer originally set for the end of 2015 until an “appropriate date.” Defense Minister Han Min-koo has noted that the transition could take place in the mid-2020s because Seoul will seek to develop its own Kill Chain preemptive strike and Korean Air and Missile Defense (KAMD) systems by that time.
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