Accra:Washington The Pentagon has reaffirmed that the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON) to South Korea will continue to be a conditions-based process, as agreed upon by both Washington and Seoul. This statement comes amidst ongoing discussions regarding the timing of the transition.
According to Yonhap News Agency, a Pentagon official stated that the transition remains a mutually agreed-upon process between the United States and the Republic of Korea, emphasizing that all necessary conditions must be met before any transition occurs. The official also noted that decisions or outcomes of this bilateral process will not be prejudged.
The comments from the Pentagon follow remarks made by South Korean President Lee Jae Myung, who expressed on Monday the need for Seoul to retake wartime OPCON at an early date. President Lee stated that South Korea is capable of managing the control and that discussions with the U.S. are progressing positively in that direction.
The debate over the timing of the OPCON transition comes as there is a perceived discrepancy between Seoul and Washington. The Lee administration has been pushing to regain OPCON before its term ends in 2030, or possibly sooner. Recently, U.S. Forces Korea Commander Gen. Xavier Brunson highlighted changes in conditions, particularly with North Korea's missile launches, suggesting that these changes necessitate new standards for the OPCON transfer.
Additionally, a spokesperson for South Korea's defense ministry commented that if the benchmarks for the transfer continue to shift, the goal of the transition might never be realized. Historically, South Korea handed over OPCON to the U.S.-led U.N. Command during the Korean War and later transferred it to the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command in 1978. While Seoul regained peacetime OPCON in 1994, wartime OPCON remains under U.S. control.