Actors Forest Whitaker, left, Jennifer Hudson, Helen Mirren and Alan Arkin pose backstage with their Oscars during the 79th Academy Awards Sunday, Feb. 25, 2007, in Los Angeles. Whitaker and Mirren won for best actor and Hudson and Arkin won for best supporting actor. (AP Photo/Kevork Djansezian)


South Korea and US likely to set up Military
Cooperation Center (MCC)

As the US agreed to transfer its wartime operation rights to South Korea by 2012, Seoul and Washington are likely to set up a Military Cooperation Center (MCC), a joint body for combat operations, in place of the current South Korea and US Combined Forces Command (CFC) that will be terminated in 2012.

Last December, the two countries created a combined implementation committee, comprised of military working-level groups from both sides, for the transfer, and the committee has held regular sessions once a week. The major role of this working-level committee is to formulate a roadmap outlining the broad procedures for implementing the agreement, and its specific procedures.

A source said that they will complete a final draft by July this year that contains the specific roadmaps, such as the goal and strategic ultimate state of war, development of military operations, and distribution of bilateral military forces. The source added that the roadmap will include the constitution and operation of the MCC to be formulated after the transfer.

The MCC, to be set up by 2010, will bridge the Korean Combined Military Command and the USJTF-K, playing a cooperative role between the two commands in Korea. The source says that the MCC, with ten sub-organizations, will also provide Korea with bridging capabilities to ease the transfer.

Regarding the South’s autonomous military capability, an official from the Defense Ministry said that South Korea plans to escalate its military forces in the mid-term defense plan. The official added that Korea will optimize its military force by purchasing sophisticated military equipment by 2011 such as two or three multi-purpose satellites, airborne early warning and control aircraft, F-15K fighter jets, an Aegis-equipped warship, and joint direct attack munitions missiles. It will consume 151 trillion won by 2011 for the project.
/ 입력시간: 2007. 02.27. 08:54