hankyoreh

There are growing calls attempting to use North Korea’s third nuclear test as a pretext to postpone the transfer of wartime operational control to South Korea from the US, which is scheduled to take place December 2015. The context and arguments are mostly the same as were made after the second nuclear test back in 2009. In that case, calls for a delay led ultimately to a decision at a bilateral summit the following year to move the date back from its original April 2012 schedule. Now they are happening on the eve of a visit to the US by President Park Geun-hye early next month. What is noteworthy this time around is that former Combined Forces Commander Burwell Bell, who pushed strongly for the transfer, has put his own weight behind calls from the military and politicians for a postponement. Their argument is that it is better for the US to continue holding the reins in order to more effectively control North Korea’s nuclear capabilities.

Obviously, we can’t overemphasize the need for a strong deterrent against the North Korean nuclear threat. We need to strengthen the alliance and organize various means of military deterrence so that North Korea cannot provoke recklessly. But the argument that it would somehow weaken the deterrent for South Korea to have wartime operational control is a feeble one. It shows the shortsightedness of people who think only of what could be gained from a postponement, and not of what is lost.

Wartime operational control is the authority to control a country’s armed forces in a time of emergency. It is symbolic of a country’s sovereignty. When Japan invaded Korea in the late 16th century, China’s Ming army took over its military on the pretext of helping it fight off the threat. The abuses Korea suffered back then provide historical evidence of how important it is for a country to run its own military. Not only that, but the US is aiming to return operational control in a way that suits its needs for a sophisticated force overseas. If they refuse to give us this exercise of sovereignty, we should demand it. It’s humiliating to see us refusing to accept something even when they are giving it to us.

We should also pay attention to the people who are saying that the transfer will actually increase the deterrent against North Korea. With the US holding control now, we have limited means of responding independently in the event of another incident like the 2010 shelling of Yeonpyeong Island. All operations depend on USFK’s say-so, not ours.

The government should not let itself be swayed by calls to postpone the transfer. It is matter of our very military sovereignty, and it has a considerable impact on our deterrent against North Korea. By the kind of reasoning coming from those in favor of a delay, we would never be able to regain operational control so long as North Korea has nuclear capabilities - and that is unacceptable. People need to realize that no matter how strong a country’s alliance may be, it can’t intimidate an adversary when it isn’t prepared to command its own military.

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