President honors outgoing USFK commander for his service

President Moon Jae-in and outgoing U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Robert Abrams salute during a decoration ceremony at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday. Courtesy of Cheong Wa Dae

Moon calls on new commander to closely communicate with Korean military

By Nam Hyun-woo

President Moon Jae-in bestowed outgoing U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) Commander Gen. Robert Abrams with an Order of National Security Merit, Thursday, in appreciation of his service here over the past 32 months.

During a ceremony at Cheong Wa Dae, Moon bestowed on him the Order of National Security Merit Tongil Medal, the top honor in the five-level merit system that awards people who have made extraordinary contributions to national security.

Seen above is a ceremonial sword President Moon Jae-in presented to outgoing U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Robert Abrams, Thursday, in appreciation for his service here. Yonhap

Moon also presented Abrams with a ceremonial sword made by a master blacksmith who is designated as an intangible cultural asset holder. It is engraved with Abrams' Korean name Woo Byung-soo, which he was given in May by a South Korea-U.S. friendship group for his “contribution to the alliance and defense of South Korea.”

“During Abrams' tenure, the alliance between South Korea and the U.S. has become more solid, and there were noticeable outcomes, such as the Sept. 19 Comprehensive Military Agreement between the two Koreas and the summit between the U.S. and the North, which helped relieve tension on the Korean Peninsula,” Moon was quoted as saying during a luncheon after the ceremony, by presidential spokeswoman Park Kyng-mee. “I appreciate Abrams for successfully carrying out his role as the commander of the USFK, Combined Forces Command (CFC) and United Nations Command.”

Abrams said he and other U.S. service members here were lucky to be stationed in Korea, which was the safest country in the world amid the COVID-19 pandemic, according to Park.

Abrams has been serving as the role since November 2018. During his tenure, Abrams stressed the importance of a combined defense posture between South Korea and the United States, describing it as the “single greatest deterrent” against any potential adversaries, including North Korea.

Due to this stance, Abrams has been at odds with the Moon administration on several occasions including over the suspension of live-fire exercises for USFK attack helicopters and the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) of Korean troops from Washington to Seoul, as the government took a conciliatory attitude toward the North hoping to revive inter-Korean talks.

The suspension of exercises came after residents living near the live-fire range complained of noise and other inconveniences due to the drills, calling for a halt to training there and the closure of the range.

President Moon Jae-in presents a sash to outgoing U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Robert Abrams after bestowing him with an Order of National Security at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday. Yonhap

Abrams will hand over his command to Gen. Paul LaCamera, who most recently served as Army Pacific commander, during a ceremony scheduled for Friday. LaCamera also attended Thursday's ceremony and the luncheon afterward at Cheong Wa Dae.

Moon told LaCamera, who served near Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) in the late 1990s, that he has “high expectations as LaCamera has expertise in security issues surrounding the Korean Peninsula,” and asked him to pay greater attention to pending issues such as the OPCON transfer and to closely communicate with the Korean military.

LaCamera also shares Abrams' idea of strengthening military readiness. During his confirmation hearing before the U.S. Senate Armed Services Committee in May, he said he believes joint field exercises are “extremely important to build readiness,” and said he would work toward their resumption.

South Korea and the United States regularly hold combined military drills, but these have largely been held as computer simulations since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Over the OPCON transfer, LaCamera also said it should be “conditions-based” and cautioned against “any effort to apply a time-based approach to this important endeavor.” This came as a counter to the Moon administration's efforts to regain OPCON from the U.S. by the end of the President's five-year term in May next year.

Regarding the combined exercises between Seoul and Washington, however, LaCamera said he also recognizes that the exercises are a “bargaining chip” for negotiations with Pyongyang. In the past couple of years, Seoul and Washington have canceled or scaled down the exercises, either for diplomatic reasons regarding the North or, as in 2020, due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Gen. Paul LaCamera, right, incoming U.S. Forces Korea commander, walks with his wife during a ceremony at Cheong Wa Dae, Thursday. Yonhap