hankyoreh

By Jung Hwan-bong, staff reporter

A classified military document on combined military exercises between South Korea and the US was found circulating online.

A Google search on July 31 by the Hankyoreh uncovered a 42-page Power Point presentation titled “C/JLOTS, April 19, 2013” on a shared document work site. In it were significant details about C/JLOTS and landing exercises that took place in Pohang, North Gyeongsang Province and other locations during the ten-day-long Foal Eagle exercises launched on April 18 between the South Korean and US militaries.

“C/JLOTS” stands for “Combined/Joint Logistics Over the Shore,” the name of a military exercise.

The exercises included around 1,200 troops from the US Army, Navy, and Air Force, as well 880 South Korean troops, including members of the 1st Marines Division, for a total of more than 2,000 troops and 400 types of equipment.

The document contained detailed accounts of the exercises drafted by different military departments, including intelligence, operations, personnel, armaments, and communications, as well as reports on Combined Forces fighting power, and was marked as having content that was “FOUO” (“for official use only”).

“FOUO” is the fourth level of classification used by the US military, coming after “top secret,” “secret,” and “confidential.” Because wartime operational plans and other materials are consulted in carrying out military exercises, FOUO exercise details may allow anyone who intercepts them to infer what the Combined Forces wartime operation plan is.

The Ministry of National Defense said it believed the materials in question were “made by the US military, not the South Korean military” and used “during meetings or exercises.” It is currently verifying with the US military whether they were indeed classified.

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