ID :
189666
Mon, 06/20/2011 - 05:38
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://oananews.org//node/189666
The shortlink copeid
USFK commander says more N. Korea attacks likely
(ATTN: ADDS photo, quotes, details, in last six paras)
SEOUL (Yonhap) -- The top U.S. commander in South Korea said Monday North Korea is likely to launch more military attacks against the South, but Seoul and Washington are prepared to more adequately address the threat.
"While the Kim (Jong-il) regime has proven a willingness to escalate in order to obtain what it wants, I am convinced that the ROK-U.S. alliance is prepared," Gen. Walter Sharp, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, told a forum in Seoul, referring to South Korea by the acronym of its official name, the Republic of Korea.
"Our counter-provocation planning and combined exercises are stronger than ever. ... In the past year, we have worked hard to develop a hostile counter-provocation plan that more adequately addresses the full spectrum of conflict."
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula rose to one of their highest levels last year since the 1950-53 Korean War after the North sank the South Korean warship Cheonan and bombarded the southern border island of Yeonpyeong, killing 50 people, including two civilians.
In between the attacks, North Korea disclosed the existence of its uranium enrichment facility, which could give Pyongyang a second way to make a nuclear bomb.
North Korea has attacked South Korea in many ways since the end of the war, which ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. Many analysts believe that the attacks were aimed at first getting attention from the outside world and then winning economic concessions from the South.
Sharp also accused North Korea of engaging in "coercive strategy."
"North Korea's unprovoked submarine attack against the Cheonan, announcement of their highly enriched uranium program and brutal artillery barrage on Yeonpyeong Island over the past year were part of the North's spiraling threat of coercive strategy," Sharp said.
"Their desire to antagonize, provoke, appease and demand concessions has been taken in order to achieve the regime's goals of gaining food, fuel, economic aid and succession to sustain their regime and become a 'strong and prosperous nation' by 2012," he said.
About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.
In the aftermath of the North's two attacks last year, South Korea is pushing forward a series of military reforms designed to enhance interoperability among the Army, Navy and Air Force and drastically increase its firepower.
Sharp called Seoul's military reform measures an "essential" step to making the South's armed forces stronger.
"It will absolutely enhance your warfighting capability through a more efficient joint structure," Sharp said. "This is essential not only for increased command and control capability, but also for fiscal prudence."
Sharp is set to retire next month, and Gen. James Thurman, chief of the U.S. Army Forces Command, will become the new USFK commander.
"We continue to face a determined enemy to the north and despite, or maybe in spite of, this face you have achieved an unprecedented degree of success," the outgoing commander said.
"Your status as global leaders in business, economics and as a military, is something to take great pride in," Sharp said. "I have not just enjoyed my time here in Korea, I have been thankful to develop such rewarding and long-lasting personnel relationships."
(END)
SEOUL (Yonhap) -- The top U.S. commander in South Korea said Monday North Korea is likely to launch more military attacks against the South, but Seoul and Washington are prepared to more adequately address the threat.
"While the Kim (Jong-il) regime has proven a willingness to escalate in order to obtain what it wants, I am convinced that the ROK-U.S. alliance is prepared," Gen. Walter Sharp, commander of U.S. Forces Korea, told a forum in Seoul, referring to South Korea by the acronym of its official name, the Republic of Korea.
"Our counter-provocation planning and combined exercises are stronger than ever. ... In the past year, we have worked hard to develop a hostile counter-provocation plan that more adequately addresses the full spectrum of conflict."
Tensions on the Korean Peninsula rose to one of their highest levels last year since the 1950-53 Korean War after the North sank the South Korean warship Cheonan and bombarded the southern border island of Yeonpyeong, killing 50 people, including two civilians.
In between the attacks, North Korea disclosed the existence of its uranium enrichment facility, which could give Pyongyang a second way to make a nuclear bomb.
North Korea has attacked South Korea in many ways since the end of the war, which ended in a truce, not a peace treaty. Many analysts believe that the attacks were aimed at first getting attention from the outside world and then winning economic concessions from the South.
Sharp also accused North Korea of engaging in "coercive strategy."
"North Korea's unprovoked submarine attack against the Cheonan, announcement of their highly enriched uranium program and brutal artillery barrage on Yeonpyeong Island over the past year were part of the North's spiraling threat of coercive strategy," Sharp said.
"Their desire to antagonize, provoke, appease and demand concessions has been taken in order to achieve the regime's goals of gaining food, fuel, economic aid and succession to sustain their regime and become a 'strong and prosperous nation' by 2012," he said.
About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.
In the aftermath of the North's two attacks last year, South Korea is pushing forward a series of military reforms designed to enhance interoperability among the Army, Navy and Air Force and drastically increase its firepower.
Sharp called Seoul's military reform measures an "essential" step to making the South's armed forces stronger.
"It will absolutely enhance your warfighting capability through a more efficient joint structure," Sharp said. "This is essential not only for increased command and control capability, but also for fiscal prudence."
Sharp is set to retire next month, and Gen. James Thurman, chief of the U.S. Army Forces Command, will become the new USFK commander.
"We continue to face a determined enemy to the north and despite, or maybe in spite of, this face you have achieved an unprecedented degree of success," the outgoing commander said.
"Your status as global leaders in business, economics and as a military, is something to take great pride in," Sharp said. "I have not just enjoyed my time here in Korea, I have been thankful to develop such rewarding and long-lasting personnel relationships."
(END)
