Korean Media: Hegseth Tells An Gwi-baek "Fight Side by Side" … Pressuring South Korea to Join Military Action Against Iran

¬ South Korean and U.S. Defense Ministers Hold Talks at Pentagon

On the 11th local time, during the South Korea-U.S. defense ministers’ talks held in Washington, U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, referring to America’s military operation against Iran named “Epic Fury,” said: “We expect our partners to stand shoulder to shoulder with us.” In his opening remarks at the meeting held at the U.S. Department of Defense headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, Hegseth added: “In the current global threat environment, the strength of our alliance is decisive.”

On the 10th, the South Korean government officially confirmed that HMM, South Korea’s largest shipping company, had suffered an attack on its multi-purpose transport vessel, the NAMU, in the Strait of Hormuz. Some analysts believe this incident may prompt the United States to publicly pressure South Korea into participating in or contributing support to U.S. operations. On the same day, President Donald Trump told Fox News that he was considering reviving the “Freedom Mission” initiative, which provides support for vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz. After the NAMU was attacked on the 4th, Trump stated: “Iran attacked a South Korean cargo ship,” adding: “Now might be the time for South Korea to join this mission.”

In his opening remarks, An Gwi-baek did not specifically mention the Middle East situation. Instead, he said: “Our ROK-U.S. alliance has stood together with unwavering trust during difficult times, and will continue to cooperate closely with one voice moving forward. We are ensuring our nation’s core defense capabilities through measures such as increasing defense spending, making every effort to achieve self-led defense of the Korean Peninsula.” This reflects South Korea’s response to the Trump administration’s calls for allies to increase defense budgets, while the phrase “achieving self-led defense of the Korean Peninsula” highlights the ongoing issue of wartime operational command authority transfer. Experts analyze that “there exists a difference in perception between South Korea and the U.S. regarding security priorities.”

The South Korean government is pushing to achieve the transfer of wartime operational command authority during President Lee Jae-myung’s term, aiming to set 2028 as the target year. However, recently, U.S. Forces Korea Commander General Xavier Brunson mentioned in Congress that he hopes conditions for the transfer will be met by the first quarter of 2029. Therefore, An Gwi-baek focused on the issue of wartime command authority transfer during this meeting.

The joint statement released after the talks included An Gwi-baek’s remarks stating: “explained South Korea’s recent efforts to increase defense budget, ensure core military capabilities, and lead defense of the Korean Peninsula.” This can be seen as emphasizing the South Korean government’s determination to transfer command authority. However, the statement did not specify the “timing” of the command authority transfer. It only contained general statements such as: “The two defense ministers discussed key alliance issues including the transfer of wartime operational command authority and alliance modernization, and agreed to strengthen cooperation going forward.”

Reports indicate that Hegseth emphasized: “It is crucial to adopt realistic and practical approaches in advancing alliance modernization to deter threats and strengthen the ROK-U.S. combined defense posture.” This can be interpreted as indicating that, in response to multifaceted threats from Russia, Iran, and others, the U.S. needs the flexibility to deploy and utilize its stationed forces and assets in Korea.

Regarding South Korea’s interest in acquiring nuclear-powered submarines, on the 12th, Deputy Defense Ministry Spokesperson Lee Kyung-ho (voice) stated that the topic was “discussed” during the talks, but it did not appear in the press release. South Korea and the U.S. had previously decided during their summit last year to cooperate on South Korea’s acquisition of nuclear submarines. However, due to delays in U.S. investment and other accumulated issues, follow-up negotiations have progressed slowly.

Given that South Korea’s Minister of Unification Jeong Dong-young’s remarks about the “Gwiju uranium enrichment facility” led the U.S. to restrict sharing intelligence on North Korea starting from early last month, this meeting’s joint press release also made no mention of the issue. When asked whether the matter had been discussed, Lee Kyung-ho simply replied: “A comprehensive discussion was held on alliance-related issues.” A security expert commented: “This meeting merely highlighted the U.S. request for South Korea to participate in military actions against Iran.”

Source: Chosun Ilbo

Original article: toutiao.com/article/1865046603596804/

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