Blue House: "U.S. Not Opposed to OPCON Transition... Domestic Politics Made Issue Contentious"

"The U.S. First Proposed an Early Transition Under the Roh Moohyun Administration"
Dismisses SCM Delay: "No Particular Reason"

On October 30, the Blue House said the United States “is not opposed” to the transition of wartime operational control (OPCON). It said the challenges stemmed from domestic politics, that there was little difference between Seoul and Washington’s positions, and that the two sides were working through consultations to achieve the transition during the current term.

A senior Blue House official made the remarks to reporters at the Blue House that day in response to a question asking whether the United States opposed the transfer of wartime OPCON to South Korea. “That is not an accurate understanding in South Korea,” the official said. “Depending on their views of the United States, some people see it as opposed to the transition of wartime OPCON,” the official said, adding, “Having been involved in negotiations for a long time, I can say the United States is not opposed to wartime OPCON.”

The official said differences between South Korea and the United States over the transition of wartime OPCON had been portrayed as greater than they actually were. “The OPCON issue has become a difficult challenge because of various domestic debates,” the official said, adding that it had been amplified and made more contentious by domestic political factors. “We want to avoid those issues and reach an agreement through smooth consultations,” the official said.

In particular, the official emphasized maintaining the combined defense posture of South Korea and the United States after the transition of wartime OPCON. “What matters is an early transition of wartime OPCON once the conditions are met,” the official said. “Beyond that, coordination between South Korea and the United States and the combined defense posture must remain unaffected after the transition.” The official added, “Having the process go awry and weaken our combined forces is not the direction we are pursuing. We want to move quickly, meet the conditions, proceed smoothly, and ensure there are no disruptions afterward.”

The official also explained the historical background to the transition of wartime OPCON. During the Roh Moo-hyun administration, the United States first proposed an early transition within the administration’s term, but South Korea requested more time to prepare, setting 2012 as the target date, the official said. The Lee Myung-bak administration later postponed it to 2015, and the Park Geun-hye administration shifted to a conditions-based approach, the official said. The Moon Jae-in administration established the principle of “an early transition based on conditions.” “We are moving in that direction. There was a pledge to do it within the term, and we are making efforts,” the official said.

Meanwhile, the official dismissed the postponement of this year’s Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) from the end of this year to early next year, saying, “I don’t think there is any particular reason. It’s a matter of scheduling.” The official added that the planned visits between the two countries would be used to discuss pending issues, including wartime OPCON, and review South Korea-U.S. security cooperation measures.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.