Korea, US should assess conditions for OPCON transfer correctly
South Korea and the United States began a joint military exercise Monday. The "crisis management staff training" (CMST) kicked off as a preliminary session in the lead-up to the Command Post Exercise (CPX), the main part of the drill, next week.
The exercise is intended to test Seoul's initial operational capability (IOC) for the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON). Combined Forces Command (CFC) deputy commander Gen. Choi Byung-hyuk is commanding the CFC in the drill, with CFC commander Gen. Robert Abrams taking the role of vice commander.
What's incomprehensible, however, is that the drill began even without a name. The exercise was tentatively named "19-2 Dong Maeng" (alliance) but is likely to be renamed as a result of North Korea's reaction. Further, the drill is not a field training exercise in which troops and military equipment are deployed actually but a defense-oriented computer simulation drill.
However, North Korea lashed out at news of the drill and threatened South Korea with a series of missile launches. The Moon Jae-in administration in Seoul keeps quiet about Pyongyang's provocations, which prompts many South Koreans to be wary of its hasty push for the OPCON transition.
The ongoing IOC certification for the South Korean military will be followed by the certification for full operational capability (FOC), the second stage, and that for full-mission capability (FMC), the third stage. Given that this is the first drill to test Seoul's readiness for the OPCON transfer, it is imperative for the allies to assess conditions for that exactly.
Seoul and Washington have agreed on a "conditions-based" OPCON transfer. The date of transition could be determined only after three conditions are met ― the South's capability to lead the allies' combined defense mechanism, its capacity for initial responses to the North's nuclear and missile threats and a stable security environment. President Moon and his aides seem quick to take back the wartime operational control. But they need to recall the saying that "haste makes waste" in consideration of the lack of progress in talks over the North's denuclearization.
South Korea and the United States began a joint military exercise Monday. The "crisis management staff training" (CMST) kicked off as a preliminary session in the lead-up to the Command Post Exercise (CPX), the main part of the drill, next week.
The exercise is intended to test Seoul's initial operational capability (IOC) for the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON). Combined Forces Command (CFC) deputy commander Gen. Choi Byung-hyuk is commanding the CFC in the drill, with CFC commander Gen. Robert Abrams taking the role of vice commander.
What's incomprehensible, however, is that the drill began even without a name. The exercise was tentatively named "19-2 Dong Maeng" (alliance) but is likely to be renamed as a result of North Korea's reaction. Further, the drill is not a field training exercise in which troops and military equipment are deployed actually but a defense-oriented computer simulation drill.
However, North Korea lashed out at news of the drill and threatened South Korea with a series of missile launches. The Moon Jae-in administration in Seoul keeps quiet about Pyongyang's provocations, which prompts many South Koreans to be wary of its hasty push for the OPCON transition.
The ongoing IOC certification for the South Korean military will be followed by the certification for full operational capability (FOC), the second stage, and that for full-mission capability (FMC), the third stage. Given that this is the first drill to test Seoul's readiness for the OPCON transfer, it is imperative for the allies to assess conditions for that exactly.
Seoul and Washington have agreed on a "conditions-based" OPCON transfer. The date of transition could be determined only after three conditions are met ― the South's capability to lead the allies' combined defense mechanism, its capacity for initial responses to the North's nuclear and missile threats and a stable security environment. President Moon and his aides seem quick to take back the wartime operational control. But they need to recall the saying that "haste makes waste" in consideration of the lack of progress in talks over the North's denuclearization.
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