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Last year, the government insisted Korea¡¯s takeover of wartime operational control of its troops by 2012 would create no additional burden for the country, but that is far from truth.
The Defense Ministry on Wednesday said it will need an additional budget of some W230 billion (US$1=W916) for an increase of 1,420 company and field officers to prepare for the takeover of wartime operational control from the U.S. between 2008 and 2012.
"In the second half of 2005, we worked out the National Defense Reform 2020,¡± a Defense Ministry official said. ¡°At that time, we failed to take into consideration the need to reinforce operational capabilities and increase information gathering and analysis abilities once South Korea takes over wartime operational control.
"But once wartime operational control is transferred, U.S. military personnel in charge of the operation and maintenance of state-of-the-art weapons systems will also leave. Therefore, we need to prepare for this."
In September last year, Cheong Wa Dae, the Government Information Agency and the ministry claimed there would be no additional budget needed for the handover.
Cheong Wa Dae posted an article titled "Understanding the Transfer of the Wartime Operational Control" on its website on Aug. 17 last year that said, "We will not need more defending spending to take back wartime operational control, nor can we save budget if we do not take it back. It simply depends on a mid-term defense plan for 2007-2011 being implemented without a hitch."
And an article titled "A 15-minute Coffee Break" posted on the GIA's website in September last year claimed, "No additional defense budget will be required to handle the transfer of wartime operational control. This means there will be no additional burden for defense spending for the people." All this now looks like an attempt to gloss over the truth to pacify strong opposition against the move.
The ministry says it needs 111 more colonels, some 600 lieutenant colonels and majors, some 400 captains, and 245 warrant officers. it will increase their number by 396 in 2008, 270 in 2009, 369 in 2010, 228 in 2011 and 157 in 2012.
That will boost the number of officers from about 70,000 in 2007 to some 72,000 by the end of 2012, a ministry official said. To implement the project, the ministry has asked for W11.4 billion from the 2008 defense budget and is expected to need a total of W236.9 billion by 2012. The new batch of officers will be assigned to mock war exercise rooms at the headquarters of the Army, Navy and Air Force, and the operational units of state-of-the-art weapons and equipment, including the Navy's combined maritime operations command, AWACS and Aegis ships, and U-214 Class Submarine.
Grand National Party lawmaker Kim Hak-song, a member of the National Assembly Defense Committee, said, "We were told until last year that it would decrease the number of officers. But the ministry has abruptly said it will increase the number by about 1,400. This is incomprehensible."
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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