Sending U.S. Forces out of Korea; Erosion of Korea-U.S. Relationship

Anxieties over the diplomatic channel between the United States and Korea not working properly have become prevalent because the U.S. has suddenly decided to dispatch the 2nd Infantry Division of the U.S. army in Korea to Iraq without any prior consultation with Korea.

On May 14, the U.S. unilaterally gave information to the Korean government that it would temporarily transfer a part of the U.S. army in Korea to Iraq, and the government has virtually accepted this suggestion without any alternative to fill the void via an international phone call between the U.S. President George W. Bush and Korean President Roh Moo-hyun.

Additionally, negotiations between the two countries on whether or not the U.S. contingent sent to Iraq from Korea will return seem to be not in good order because the positions of the two countries have not been settled clearly.

In relation to this, U.S. experts in and out of Korea’s political world have pointed out that “it is clear evidence that the function of a ‘Diplomatic Buffer Zone’ between Korea and the United States that can adjust and mediate disputes and conflicts in advance has been severely weakened. An overall inspection of the Korea-U.S. relationship and diplomacy towards the U.S. should be carried out immediately.”

On the other hand, regarding the dispatch of the 2nd Infantry Division of the U.S. army to Iraq as a practical reduction of the U.S. forces in Korea, the government is known to have driven forward a countermeasure for the negotiation of adjusting U.S. forces in Korea in accordance with the Global Posture Realignment (GPR) program of the U.S. forces.

At a press conference on May 18, the Foreign Affairs and Trade Minister, Bahn Ki-moon, stated that “the United States has mapped out an organization of synthesized armed force that can rapidly confront possible intimidation through the GPR. According to this, they explained that the need to send some of U.S. army in Korea to Iraq has materialized without taking any additional operational burden.”

He added that “the United States has already decided to spend an additional 11 billion dollars on the Korean peninsula in order to reinforce the military forces there for the upcoming three years. The U.S. forces will take every measure to supplement the U.S. forces in Korea, such as the dispatch of Patriot missiles, reinforcement of Navy and Air Force strength in Korea, and the additional dispatch of strategic bombers to the neighboring area.”

In advance, a spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Defense disclosed on May 17 that the amount of the U.S. contingent from Korea to Iraq, the 2nd Brigade of the 2nd Infantry Division, will number 3,400 to 3,800, and whether or not they will return to Korea approximately after one year has not been decided yet.

When he explained the background of the dispatch plan, he described the movement of the 2nd Brigade as a “relocation,” saying, “This is a part of the reorganization and improvement program of the U.S. forces in Korea.”

Hyong-gwon Pu Soon-Taek won bookum90@donga.com maypole@donga.com