hankyoreh

The Lee Myung-bak government has announced that it will be sending around 130 South Korean troops to the United Arab Emirates by the end of the year. In connection with the country’s order for nuclear power plant construction, the troops are entrusted with duties such as supporting the education and training of the UAE armed forces and protecting South Korean citizens in times of emergency. Deployment of South Korean troops overseas is a matter that needs to be actively considered when humanitarian aid and peacekeeping situations arise. Circumstances falling into this category would include the sending of engineer battalions following the Haiti earthquake early this year, or the deployment of U.N. peacekeeping forces when East Timor gained independence.
However, this latest deployment is problematic first and foremost because it lacks a strong rationale that can be explained directly to the international community. According to the Lee government’s explanation, the military cooperation card likely contributed to South Korea’s earning the construction bid. But however beneficial it may be in terms of moneymaking, traveling from country to country without any concern for justification is something that a mercenary squad would do. In short, this deployment bears no connection with the mission of the Republic of Korea’s armed forces, nor has there been any social consensus formed that it is acceptable to hand such duties to the nation’s armed forces.
This deployment is also likely to have major side effects in light of the thorny political situation in the Middle East. One immediate result will be alarm from Iran, which is located just across the Persian Gulf from the UAE and has maintained a tense relationship with the country. If South Korean forces are positioned there, Iran’s military forces will be designated as a hypothetical enemy. Diplomatic relations between South Korea and Iran, already severely strained due to our participation in the U.S.-led sanctions against the country, are very likely to become even more uncomfortable. Nor is the attack on a South Korean oil pipeline in Yemen a few days ago a matter to be passed over lightly.
Also highly problematic is the procedure behind the deployment’s implementation. When it announced the power plant order in late 2009, the Lee government only gave the cursory explanation that it had agreed to military cooperation. However, following Grand National Party discussions with the Defense Ministry yesterday, National Assembly National Defense Committee Chairman Won Yoo-chul went so far as to talk about a strategic alliance between the two countries. An alliance literally means a high-intensity relationship of cooperation in which two countries fight on the same side when a war breaks out. However, as the Lee government has not disclosed any of the related discussion process, it truly seems to think little of the people of South Korea. The Lee government has also set a long period for the deployment, which is to extend until the construction is completed in 2020. Due to the long-term plan, many are concerned of the possibility that concerns for the troops’ safety issues will be neglected.
This deployment plan smacks of the opportunistic notion that it is acceptable to sacrifice all other values if something produces economic benefits in the near term. This may or may not be a case of the “business first” mentality, but it is no way to guard national interests. We hope the Lee government withdraws this misguided plan.
　　
Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]