US military to retake control of all Osan Air Base gate access from Korea

Fighter jets are parked at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, May 9. Yonhap

The U.S. Air Force in Korea is set to take measures to tighten security by retaking control of access to a gate at Osan Air Base, currently shared with the Korean military, officials said Thursday.

The move comes after the U.S. military lodged a complaint over a special counsel team's search and seizure at the air base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, in July as part of its investigation into former President Yoon Suk Yeol's failed martial law bid.

Currently, the U.S. side controls access to two of three gates that are in use at the air base, which also stations key facilities operated by the Korean Air Force, such as the Air Force Operations Command and the Air Force Master Control and Reporting Center.

Once the tighter security measure goes into effect next month, Korean military personnel would need U.S.-approved defense identification cards to access the remaining gate at the air base. The South's military now can access it with identification cards issued by the Korean government.

The U.S. 51st Fighter Wing confirmed that base access requirements have been "updated" to ensure security.

"We recently updated base access requirements, and all changes were made in coordination with our ROKAF partners," the unit said in a statement, referring to the Korean Air Force by its formal name, the Republic of Korea Air Force.

"It is our priority to ensure the security of Osan AB, and these changes will enhance our interoperability with our ROKAF partners," it said.

A Korean Air Force official said both sides are closely coordinating on improving the access system at Osan Air Base, without further elaborating, citing security reasons.

Following the special counsel team's raid, U.S. Forces Korea Deputy Commander Lt. Gen. David Iverson reportedly sent a letter to the foreign ministry protesting the search.

Korean officials, including the chiefs of the defense ministry and the Air Force, have stressed that the search took place in areas governed by the Korean military, and that the raid does not violate the bilateral Status of Forces Agreement on hosting U.S. troops in Korea.