SEOUL– Gen. Paul LaCamera will take office as the new commander of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) next month, the U.S. military said Thursday.
LaCamera, who most recently served as Army Pacific Commander, will replace Gen. Robert Abrams to lead the 28,500-strong USFK in a change of command ceremony slated for July 2 at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, 70 kilometers south of Seoul, according to USFK.
Abrams led the USFK since November 2018.
The USFK commander also heads the United Nations Command and the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command.
LaCamera was initially nominated to the post in December by then U.S. President Donald Trump but the confirmation process was delayed, apparently due to the government changes in Washington.
During his confirmation hearing last month, LaCamera highlighted the importance of joint field exercises between South Korea and the United States, saying he will work for their resumption if confirmed.
The two countries regularly hold joint military drills, but their exercises have mostly been computer-simulated due to the coronavirus situation and efforts to back denuclearization dialogue between Washington and Pyongyang.
USFK said next month’s ceremony will be streamed live on its official Facebook page.
Source: Yonhap News Agency