Blue House: "U.S. Will Find It Difficult to Devote as Much Effort to Korean Peninsula Defense as Before"; Stresses Need for Wartime Operational Control

Kang Geonjak, First Deputy Director of the National Security Office
"An agreement beyond the conditions may be possible"

The Blue House said on Tuesday that “the United States has to use its military power to carry out its strategy around the world,” adding that “it will be difficult for the United States to devote as much attention as it did in the past to defending the Korean Peninsula.” It also argued that the transfer of wartime operational control is necessary given the changing security environment.

Kang Geonjak, First Deputy Director of the Office of National Security, made the remarks on SBS Radio’s “Kim Taehyun’s Political Show” that day, responding to a question about whether transferring wartime operational control would make it difficult to defend the country.

Kang Geonjak, First Deputy Director of the Office of National Security, Yonhap News Agency

Kang said, “If something similar happened on the Korean Peninsula while the United States was engaged in the war with Iran, would it be able to commit the same level of support?” He added, “Saudi Arabia urgently wanted help from the United States during the war with Iran, but the United States has been unable to readily provide it.”

Kang went on to say, “We should not look only at the North Korean threat when discussing the issue of wartime operational control,” adding that “change is inevitable, considering the world order and the vision the United States seeks to pursue.” His remarks reflected the view that South Korea should take the lead in its defense by securing wartime operational control as the U.S.-centered alliance order comes under strain.

Kang also pointed to problems arising from the different command structures in wartime and peacetime. “In our country, wartime and peacetime are treated separately, with entirely different commands in charge,” he said, noting that “it is destabilizing that the decision to shift between the two depends on the political judgment of the presidents of both countries.” He added, “There is a contradiction. It needs to be resolved.”

On consultations over the transfer of wartime operational control, Kang said, “I basically believe things will go well,” adding, “We are also considering, as one of several options, making a forward-looking decision after making some changes to our command structure and building the structure, posture and capabilities needed to exercise wartime operational control in practice.”

Kang also said he believed that “conducting strategic and situational assessments together with the United States could lead to an agreement that goes beyond the conditions” for the transfer of wartime operational control. Regarding recent remarks by Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea and the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, that the conditions for the transfer had changed, Kang said, “He was not talking about the overall defense capabilities or combat power of the South Korean military.”

However, when asked whether South Korea was also considering declaring the independent recovery of wartime operational control, Kang dismissed the idea, saying, “I believe the end state must also be based on the South Korea-U.S. alliance,” and “We need to build a better posture and structure on the basis of the alliance.”

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