Commander of U.S. Forces in Pacific Gives Congressional Testimony

Korea`s Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) is the world most heavily armed area and artillery pieces deployed there have chemical warheads, Adm. Thomas Fargo (picture), commander of U.S. Forces in the Pacific, said Thursday.

Adm. Fargo gave his report on the day at the hearing of the House International Relations Subcommittee and witnessed that North Korea’s policies and actions, which range from highly enriched uranium programs to illegal drug traffic, are very serious.

Senior officials such as Gen. Leon J. LaPorte, commander of U.S. forces in South Korea, have been pointing out that some of North Korea’s long range missiles which have been concentrated along the DMZ are aimed at Seoul and could carry chemical warheads thereby causing an enormous number of causalities if war broke out.

Relocation of the U.S. forces in South Korea will enhance the maneuverability of U.S. forces, hence enabling them to support Korean forces more efficiently, the Adm. Fargo claimed.

Repositioning U.S. troops in South Korea will make them more easily available for use if they are needed for other conflicts in Asia or elsewhere in the world, said Christopher LaFleur, a special envoy of State for East Asian security involved in negotiations concerning the repositioning of U.S. military forces.

Meanwhile, Adm. Fargo said that despite escalating tensions among neighboring countries on nuclear issues, the chances of war are low on the Korean Peninsula but consequences would be very severe if war broke out.

maypole@donga.com