The JSA, now solely under the protection of South Korean troops for the first time in half-a-century, looks as different from the outside as it has been transformed on the inside.　The U.S. and Korea decided in November last year that JSA patrol duties were to be completely handed over to Korean troops, and on Monday, those duties were officially transferred.

Korean soldiers carry out their duties on Monday after they took over patrol duties from the American-led United Nations Command at a guard post in the Joint Security Area.

The core of the transfer plan states that though the command responsibility still lies to the United Nations, patrolling duties are the responsibility of Korean troops. Accordingly, U.S. forces have turned over Outpost Ouellette to South Korean troops. U.S. forces have totally evacuated from two camps, leaving the management of the system to Korean troops. U.S. forces, which once stood for 30 percent of the whole security force, are now scaled down to only 7 percent. South Korean unit commander Shim Dong-hyun said, "About 40 U.S. soldiers are left on the site," and added, "Their roles are confined to administrative work and helping foreign visitors."

The JSA is a small, oval-shaped enclave sitting in the Military Demarcation Line. According to an agreement signed between the United Nations and North Korea on Nov. 8, 1954, soldiers from both sides were deployed to the area to do guard duties. Until 1976, no line was drawn through the JSA, and soldiers from both sides as well as visiting civilians could freely walk around it. Following the Ax Murderer Incident of Aug. 18, 1976, however, a line was drawn through the middle of the JSA, with each side tasked with guarding their respective side. The U.S. and South Koreans left security to the area to the UNCSB-JSA, with soldiers from both sides deployed there. Most of the major duties in the area had been transferred to the Koreans since 1991, but there were still quite a few U.S. soldiers at observation points. The JSA received nationwide attention because of the suspicious death of 1st Lt. Kim Hun in 1998, and "JSA," a movie depicting the friendship between North Korean and South Korean soldiers in the area that would lend its name to the title, was very popular.

Regarding the shift of patrolling duty of the area, U.S. and Korea have had difficulty coming to an agreement. The U.S. argued the shift should take place in October, as changes in the scope of USFK in accordance with the current GPR (Global Defense Posture Review) were unavoidable, and there was a need to re-adjust the role played by U.S. troops in Korea due to the redeployment of the 2nd Infantry Division. South Korea, however, requested that the time period of the transfer be prolonged in accordance with concerns strongly raised in certain segments of Korean society and within the National Assembly that if Korean troops were to take over the duties completely, USFK's trip-wire role in case of emergency would disappear and it might strengthen North Korea's schemes to render powerless the U.N. Command and Armistice Agreement. Such differences in when and how the shift should take place were narrowed through numerous "Future of the ROK-U.S. Alliance Policy Initiative" sessions last year.

Korean troops, in preparing for the shift, formed a unit to replace the UNCSB-JSA and have conducted special training programs for many months now. Both the U.S. and Korea have given those troops a passing grade. Troop strength in the JSA was bolstered by 150 men, and armament and equipment were updated as well.

Lt. Col. Paul Snyder, commander of UNCSB-JSA, said, "The JSA duty transfer means that Korean troops will be in charge of maintaining the troops and facilities in the area and maintaining the ceasefire situation… This means Korean troops will take on more responsibilities in protecting their country."

(Jang Il-hyun, ihjang@chosun.com )