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U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Burwell Bell on Tuesday suggested that South Korea will be on its own in maintaining the armistice on the Korean Peninsula, which is the role of the nominal UN command, once Seoul has full control of its troops. Bell said once the U.S. hands wartime operational control of Korean troops to Seoul, the UN commander -- himself -- ¡°will have no command authority over any¡± Korean forces, with the Korean military ¡°commanding the demilitarized zone and sea patrol in the Northern Limit Line (NLL).¡± He stressed the Korean military ¡°will have the command authority of all forces in potential contact with an enemy,¡± i.e. North Korea, on the heavily fortified border.
At a press conference at the USFK garrison in Yongsan, Bell also expressed discontent about the delay of the relocation of USFK headquarters to Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, warning he would ¡°fight¡± if political decisions, budgetary constraints or other reasons halt the long-planned relocation. The Defense Ministry and the USFK both hastened to play down the remarks when the press zoned in on the word ¡°fight,¡± saying that the U.S. commander meant to say he will try to resolve the problem. Observers say the terminology shows how determined Bell is to see the relocation completed.
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U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Burwell Bell answers questions from reporters during a press conference at the headquarters of the Eighth Army in Yongsan, Seoul on Tuesday.
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Gen. Bell is unhappy with the Korean government¡¯s plan to postpone the relocation from 2008 to 2013, as recently reported in the press. A source said the commander wanted to hold the press conference to deny media reports that the delay has the consent of the USFK. But completing the relocation by 2008 is now practically impossible after massive protests and other problems delayed the start of construction, which will take three or four years given the scale of the project.
Bell reiterated that the transfer of operational control is possible by 2009, again expressing hope that Seoul and Washington can reach agreement on the timetable by the summer. He also expressed misgivings about the Korea-U.S. agreement on Seoul¡¯s share of the USFK upkeep, another long-lasting bone of contention. Bell said he would have to tell the Korean and U.S. governments next month what USFK activities and projects should be scaled down due to the insufficient budget. He claimed the USFK was more than W100 billion (US$1=W938) short.
The shortfall will mainly result in cuts to the number of Korean staff at U.S. bases, a reduction in USFK purchases from Korean suppliers, and scaled-down base facility construction, the commander said.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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