Delay of OPCON transfer could reverse relocation of US troops from Seoul

Posted on : 2014-09-19 16:10 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Most troops are scheduled to move to Pyeongtaek, but US seeking to maintain presence north of the Han River
 Gyeonggi Province
Gyeonggi Province

By Park Byong-su, senior staff writer

Questions over whether South Korea and the US will once again postpone the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) are now raising concerns that USFK relocation plans could be downsized or reversed.

 Sept. 18. (Yonhap News)
Sept. 18. (Yonhap News)

The US, which had previously asked that the Combined Forces Command (CFC) be allowed to stay in Seoul, reportedly expressed strong hopes for its 210th Field Artillery Brigade to stay on in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province during a recent Korea-U.S. Integrated Defense Dialogue (KIDD). It now appears to be using South Korea’s request for another OPCON transfer postponement as leverage to demand relocation agreement concessions that Seoul had previously been unwilling to make.

“Recently, the US has been repeatedly saying that it believes the 210th Field Artillery Brigade in Dongducheon, from the 2nd Infantry Division, needs to stay north of the Han River in the interests of military operations,” explained a diplomatic source on Sept. 18, on condition of anonymity.

“My understanding is that it repeated this position at the 6th KIDD in Seoul on Sept. 17 and 18,” the source added.

The US has also reportedly asked for CFC to stay in Seoul. The same source said its feelings about the 210th Field Artillery Brigade and CFC are “quite strong.”

It isn’t the first such request from the US. CFC commander Curtis Scaparrotti was expressing hopes for the 210th Fires Brigade to remain in Dongducheon as early as Nov. 2013.

“In terms of the residual in what we call Area I (north of the Han River), there may be a need operationally to leave some residual in those areas just for proper defense and response,” Scaparrotti said at the time.

In July, he hinted that the issue of a CFC residual in Seoul was under discussion with South Korea, saying it was “under consideration” and “there has been no decision in that area.”

Analysts said the US’s decision to bring the matter up at KIDD suggest it wants to resolve the issue by tying it to negotiations for the OPCON transfer postponement ahead of the Security Consultative Meeting (SCM) in Washington on Oct. 23.

But by asking for the residuals, the US is backing out of a previous agreement with South Korea to relocate all USFK forces at Yongsan Garrison, and north of the Han River in general, to Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province by 2016. An agreement on relocating the Yongsan Garrison, including CFC, was already reached at a Future of the Alliance meeting in Jan. 2004. Another for the 2nd Infantry Division, including the 210th Field Artillery Brigade, had been previously reached as a part of the two countries’ Land Partnership Plan (LPP) in 2002.

Critics are accusing the US of being “excessive” for waiting until now and using the OPCON transfer postponement talks as leverage to demand the residuals.

Also factoring in is the fact that the LPP and Yongsan Relocation Program (YRP) were both ratified by the National Assembly in Dec. 2004 and are currently under way. This means any revision to them is certain to stir up yet more political conflict - not to mention an outcry from the affected local governments and residents. Indeed, residents of Dongducheon, which has drafted a comprehensive development plan for the vacated land for after the 2nd Infantry Division is relocated, have repeatedly insisted that the original plan be followed whenever the possibility of a residual is mentioned.

Plans for a park in Yongsan would also have to be heavily revised if CFC stays on in Seoul. Since the Special Act on the Creation of Yongsan Park was enacted in 2007, the South Korean government has been preparing to build a 2.43 million square meter park on the garrison’s site after the relocation. But with the US demanding over one-third of that area - 926,000 square meters - for offices, lodging, and amenities for a 1,000-person CFC residual during 2003 negotiations, many are predicting the Yongsan Park plan will have to be revised substantially if the decision is made to keep CFC in Yongsan.

The US Army has reportedly said that if the 210th Field Artillery Brigade is pulled back to Pyeongtaek, it would be difficult to respond effectively to an attack by the North Korean military. The US believes that the artillery in the brigade’s possession - including the MLRS (multiple launch rocket system) and the ATACMS surface-to-surface missile system - would serve as a deterrent to the threat of North Korea’s long-range artillery. The US also holds that the ROK-US Combined Forces Command needs to stay in Seoul in order to facilitate cooperation with South Korea’s Ministry of Defense and the Joint Chiefs of Staff.

On Sept. 18, Ryu Je-seung, chief of policy for the Korean Ministry of Defense, met with reporters after the conclusion of KIDD. “I cannot confirm whether the US suggested during the meeting that the Combined Forces Command should remain in Seoul,” Ryu said.

“There are no changes to the government‘s current position that it will move forward with the relocation of the US military base as it has promised the public. We are carefully considering what the ideal plan is to maintain our combined forces within the framework of our current position,” Ryu said.

In regard to the issue of moving the Combined Forces Command, sources say that the Korean Ministry of Defense and the US have been talking about the possibility of locating it in the USFK Command building, which is currently being built at the base in Pyeongtaek. At present, work on the Pyeongtaek Base is 71% complete, and the structures being built for USFK Command total 59,547㎡ of floor space, including a four-story main building, a two-story annex, and an operation center.

But if the US insists on keeping Combined Forces Command in Seoul, South Korea would have trouble simply ignoring the American position. South Korea has already requested that OPCON be delayed once more, and the US argues that Combined Forces Command and part of the 2nd Infantry Division need to stay where they are if the OPCON transfer is to take place.

Another suggestion is that the US has financial reasons to request that the 210th Field Artillery Brigade remain at Dongducheon. With the US moving to cut its defense budget because of a massive budget deficit, the more than 6 trillion won (US$5.75 billion) cost of moving the 2nd Infantry Division to Pyeongtaek is a cause of concern.

In June, the US Senate Committee on Armed Service halted construction on USFK family housing units that would have cost tens of millions of dollars because of a lack of funding. To raise funds, the committee told the military to make use of the US-ROK defense sharing agreement or to reconsider the plan to relocate the Yongsan base.

“US Forces Korea and the Pentagon first of all need to cut costs because of the shrinking defense budget. They also seem to need to assert their presence by emphasizing the importance of the Korean peninsula through deploying a military base at the front,” said Kim Jong-dae, editor of the journal Defense 21+.

 

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]

 

button that move to original korean article (클릭시 원문으로 이동하는 버튼)

Related stories

Most viewed articles