Category: US-ROK Alliance

The Moon administration was not in favor of the THAAD deployment and made things hard on USFK to sustain the unit such as delaying the environmental assessment:

 A thorough investigation is necessary if there are suspicions that the previous Moon Jae-in administration deliberately dragged its feet in normalizing the U.S. THAAD missile defense system in South Korea, a senior presidential official said Wednesday.

Allegations have arisen that the Moon administration deliberately delayed the publishing of an environmental assessment report of the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery base, which was installed in Seongju, 214 kilometers southeast of Seoul, in 2017. 

Since its installation, the unit has been kept in a temporary status pending the assessment.

“The normalization of the Seongju base is an essential measure for the Korea-U.S. combined defense posture,” the official said. “If there are suspicions this measure was deliberately delayed, I think we have to provide related facts to the people through a thorough investigation.”

Normalization of the THAAD base picked up speed after President Yoon Suk Yeol came into office. 

Earlier this year, the environment ministry concluded that the base poses no health hazards, saying the maximum amount of electromagnetic waves emanating from the THAAD base was just 0.2 percent of the legal safety protection standard.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but the Yoon administration should also investigate why the Moon administration allowed protesters to almost continuously break the law and block the road forcing USFK to move personnel and equipment to the THAAD site via helicopter.

It appears the pro-US-ROK alliance activists greatly outnumbered the anti-US protesters last week outside of Camp Humphreys:

Thousands of demonstrators converged outside Camp Humphreys on the 70th anniversary of the Korean War armistice, prompting a response by hundreds of police officers and snarling traffic on the U.S. Army installation.

Activists — some opposed to the U.S. presence on the Korean Peninsula, some in full-throated support — arrived in dozens of buses throughout Thursday, some coming from as far as Busan, about 150 miles south of the U.S. base in Pyeongtaek.

The atmosphere outside the gates resembled a music festival: Whistles, chants and techno music blared from speakers mounted on parked cars as delivery trucks hauled digital billboards scrolling “Support U.S. alliance” slowly past the crowd.

Around 8,000 people gathered near at least two of the base’s six gates, the largest assembly in the area since South Korea ended COVID-19 social distancing restrictions in April 2022, according to an email Friday from Erick Crudup, operations officer for the base Directorate of Emergency Services.

Activists on both sides of the road leading to Yoon Gate — the main entrance to Humphreys — chanted “USA” while waving American and South Korean flags. U.S. service members driving past the scene honked their horns and waved in support.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but according to the article there was only about 100 anti-US protesters present. This is in stark contrast to the massive hate filled anti-US protests that were launched when Camp Humphreys was being expanded years ago.

It looks like this is the response to North Korea’s ICBM launch, holding a trilateral missile defense exercise:

South Korea, the United States and Japan held a joint naval drill, the South Korean Navy said Sunday, in a show of strengthened trilateral military cooperation against North Korea’s escalating nuclear threats.

The three allies staged a missile defense exercise in international waters between South Korea and Japan, Sunday, mobilizing three Aegis-equipped destroyers ― ROKS Yulgok Yi I, USS John Finn and JS Maya ― to enhance readiness against North Korea’s missile provocations.

The previous joint drill was held on April 17 and the latest one was the fourth combined exercise to take place during the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

Nuclear weapons will be returning to South Korea for the first time in decades:

Lt. Gen. Scott L. Pleus, deputy commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, speaks during a peace forum hosted by Yonhap News Agency and the unification ministry at a hotel in central Seoul, Thursday. Yonhap

The United States will send a nuclear-armed submarine to South Korea “in the near future” for the first time in decades, in another show of the U.S. commitment to the defense of its ally, the deputy commander of the U.S. Forces Korea said Thursday.

Lt. Gen. Scott L. Pleus, who doubles as the commander of the U.S. Seventh Air Force, made the remarks at an annual forum hosted by Yonhap News Agency and the unification ministry in Seoul as the allies seek to bolster efforts to deter North Korea’s evolving military threats.

“In the near future, you can expect another show of the U.S. commitment to extended deterrence by a port visit by the nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarine,” he said, without specifying the timing of its visit.

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

This is a pretty easy call for the White House because the American public will be calling for North Korea to be turned into a glowing parking lot of they fired nuclear weapons at South Korea and the U.S. troops stationed there:

 South Korea and the United States agreed to take “swift, overwhelming and decisive” action using all of their military capabilities, including U.S. nuclear weapons, in the event of North Korea’s nuclear attack, President Yoon Suk Yeol said Wednesday.

Yoon made the remark during a joint press conference with U.S. President Joe Biden following their summit talks at the White House, outlining a joint statement, dubbed the “Washington Declaration”, that they adopted to strengthen “extended deterrence” against the North’s nuclear and missile threats.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This news is likely an effort to appease the majority of South Korea’s population that now supports the ROK developing their own nuclear weapons deterrent:

President Yoon Suk Yeol greets Korean nationals upon his arrival at Blair House in Washington, D.C., Monday (local time). Yoon is scheduled to hold a summit with U.S. President Joe Biden at the White House on Wednesday. Joint Press Corps

Seoul and Washington are likely to agree on carrying out joint planning and joint execution of U.S. nuclear assets, according to defense analysts, Tuesday, which would mark a major upgrade of the U.S. extended deterrence provided to its ally.

According to both governments, President Yoon Suk Yeol and U.S. President Joe Biden will release an additional joint statement on strengthened extended deterrence after their summit at the White House on Wednesday (local time).

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

As long as President Emperor Xi is in charge, I don’t think the Chinese are interested in dialogue with Taiwan when they saw how effective blunt force was to crush Hong Kong and no one did anything to stop it. They are waiting for the right moment to use force against Taiwan as well when they feel like no one can stop them as well:

Vedant Patel, principal deputy spokesperson for the Department of State, is seen answering questions during a daily press briefing at the department in Washington on April 21, 2023 in this captured image. (Yonhap)

A U.S. state department spokesperson on Friday echoed South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol’s recent remarks against China changing the status quo in the Taiwan Strait by force.

Vedant Patel, principal deputy spokesperson for the state department, also said the United States will continue to work with its allies, including South Korea, to maintain peace and stability across the Taiwan Strait.

“We urge Beijing to cease its military, diplomatic and economic pressure against Taiwan and instead engage in dialogue with Taiwan,” the spokesperson told a daily press briefing.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is something both the PRC and DPRK do not want to see happen which means it is a positive development:

South Korea, the United States and Japan will hold a trilateral senior-level defense meeting in the U.S. later this week, an informed source said Monday, amid joint efforts to sharpen deterrence against North Korean threats.

The deputy minister-level Defense Trilateral Talks (DTT) is set to take place Friday (U.S. time), according to the source who requested anonymity. The last DTT session was held virtually in 2020.

The three sides are expected to discuss ways to flesh out last year’s summit agreement by their leaders to share missile warning data in real time to counter the North’s nuclear and missile threats.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

President Yoon is facing criticism to find out how the US collected intelligence on their internal discussions on providing artillery shells to Ukraine. I am willing to bet people were talking on their cell phones about it which anyone can tap and listen into. It could have additionally come from using non-secure email. Anything said over a cellphone or non-secure email you may as well concede that someone can tap into it if they want to:

The presidential office in Yongsan District, Seoul / Courtesy of presidential office

Revelations of alleged wiretapping of the South Korean government by U.S. intelligence is feared to overshadow President Yoon Suk Yeol’s scheduled summit with his U.S. counterpart Joe Biden later this month.

Yoon is facing growing domestic pressure to demand the truth and seek an apology from Washington. But this also presents a tough choice for the president to make, since such demands could spoil the mood as the two countries are set to celebrate the 70th anniversary of their alliance during the summit.

According to The New York Times and other Western media reports, classified military and intelligence documents that have been trending online in recent weeks contain internal discussions of the South Korean government on whether to provide the U.S. with artillery shells to be used in Ukraine, violating Seoul’s policy of not providing lethal weapons.

In the documents, which were identified as being from the CIA, former presidential secretary for foreign affairs Lee Moon-hee ― referred to as Yi Mun-hui in the documents ― reported to former Director of National Security Kim Sung-han that Yoon and Biden should not speak on the phone before Seoul forms a clear stance on supplying ammunition to Ukraine. 

Lee noted that Seoul cannot go against its own stance of not providing lethal weapons. Thus, the only option is to change its stance. However, Kim raised concerns that such a move could be interpreted as a compromise between Yoon’s state visit to the U.S. and the ammunition deal, while he “suggested the possibility” of selling munitions to Poland, according to the report.

After the alleged wiretapping was revealed, the presidential office said it will “have necessary consultations with the U.S.” and “explore measures by reviewing past precedents in other countries.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.