Defense chief blasts troops for being too 'dependent'

By Byun Duk-kun
SEOUL, Dec. 8 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's defense minister lashed out at his
military commanders and servicemembers Monday, saying they have become too
dependent on U.S. troops stationed here for the country's defense.
Lee Sang-hee also claimed some among South Korea's public were naive in believing
that North Korea would never start a war after years of exchange and economic
cooperation with the South.
"Some say there will never be any provocation from North Korea in this era of
exchange and cooperation between the two Koreas...and call the military's
fulfilling of its very basic duty of preparing for every possible scenario an
unnecessary act that can provoke North Korea," the defense minister said.
"There are also some people who believe our efforts to build an advanced, strong
military run against the current trend of reconciliation," he added.
Lee's remarks came during an emergency meeting of military commanders, held in
the wake of a recent grenade explosion at a frontline check point that left five
servicemembers injured. The meeting was attended by all key leaders of the armed
services, including the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff.
His remarks come after ten years of the military being sidelined by the former
liberal governments of Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun, both of whom held summit
talks with the communist North's reclusive leader Kim Jong-il while in office.
The minister, however, said the military itself has become too dependent and too
comfortable with its current role.
"On the one hand, we've become somewhat numb to the need to develop our
capabilities to plan a war and carry out our own missions as we have become too
comfortable with the joint South Korea and the United States defense system," he
said.
The United States currently maintains some 28,500 troops here as a deterrent
against possible aggression from the North. The U.S. soldiers are part of a
combined forces command that includes South Korea's 650,000-strong military.
Washington, which currently has wartime operational control (OPCON) of all
combined forces, is set to transfer command of South Korean troops to Seoul in
April 2012.
Ahead of the upcoming change, Lee said the country's armed services must start
preparing themselves right now to be ready for any provocation under any
circumstance.
"Being prepared means being fully ready to counter any present threats under any
conditions with available power," Lee said. "To do this, we must continue to be
fully ready to overcome any provocation even if the fight starts tonight."
bdk@yna.co.kr
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