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U.S. Forces Korea commander Burwell B. Bell
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In an interview with the Wall Street Journal on Saturday, Gen. Burwell B. Bell, commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, said, "First and foremost, I'm worried... about the conventional threat that the North Korean military poses to South Korea."
Bell said, "What worries me is that North Korea is a 'military first' country where all their resources and their focus goes into the maintenance of the military apparatus." He continued, "This is a very large military, over a million men under arms in a very small country of only 22 million people. That means... [at] any time 5% of the whole country, regardless of age, [is] serving on active duty."
As for the North Korean nuclear threat, Bell hinted that it is difficult to determine precisely how far the North's nuclear capabilities have advanced so far. "We don't know what we don't know," he told the newspaper.
On the six-party nuclear disarmament talks, Bell said North Korea has been cycling between cooperating and stalling. "Six-party negotiators take note: (North Korean leader) Kim Jong-il is not in the habit of keeping promises," the newspaper said.
(englishnews@chosun.com )
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