WASHINGTON — Gen. Xavier Brunson, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, said the conditions agreed by Seoul and Washington for the transfer of wartime operational control have changed. The remarks are seen as striking a different note from the South Korean government, which has set a target year for the transfer this year and is pushing to complete it as early as next year.
Speaking on the 14th at a seminar hosted by the Gold Institute for International Strategy, a Washington think tank, Brunson said he supports the transfer. "I am a proponent of the transfer of wartime operational control, because this modernizes the greatest alliance in the world," he said. "But what I am against is violating the conditions that were set years ago and that exist now. We have been working on this since 2015."
"None of us can say that the conditions have not changed," he said. "Even a quick glance at the newspaper will tell you that the conditions have clearly changed. There was another missile launch from North Korea this week. The conditions have changed, and because we changed our plans, new standards have emerged that we must meet."
Brunson has attended several think tank events in Washington in recent days, repeatedly saying that North Korean forces have advanced their capabilities through participation in the war in Ukraine and that the security situation on the Korean Peninsula has shifted as a result. His comments are read as meaning that because conditions have changed, the command transfer must be assessed accordingly and handled with caution.
Seoul and Washington are at odds over whether the conditions for the transfer have been met, according to sources. South Korea takes the position that the conditions have been sufficiently met and that an immediate transfer would pose no problem, while the United States still judges that they have not been met. "Someone will make a decision not to oppose the transfer of wartime operational control, but I want us to meet the conditions that were set previously," Brunson said.
On a transfer based on timing rather than conditions, he said: "That is not what we do." He added, "Time itself is one condition, but we are talking about core capabilities, the ability to carry out every mission flawlessly."
With a senior U.S. military official serving on the front line stating that the conditions required for the transfer have changed, the South Korean government's plan to pursue an early handover is expected to face difficulties.