SEOUL, Oct 19 — South Korean President Lee Jae Myung said the country is fully capable of taking back wartime operational control of the combined forces with the United States (US) stationed in the country, as talks with Washington on the change are progressing.
He added that Seoul has built a powerful military that can counter North Korea even though Pyongyang has developed nuclear weapons, which Lee said are fundamentally a means for final defence, not for combat in a war.
"To put it plainly, we should take back wartime operation control at an early time. We are fully capable of it, and discussions with the US are basically going well," he told the media at the Blue House presidential compound.
However, Lee noted that the process is far from simple, as it has been 70 years since the US was entrusted with operational control.
South Korea made the decision during the Korean War from 1950 to 1953, enabling the US military to lead the United Nations forces fighting for South Korea. In 2007, the two countries agreed to eventually transfer command and control to Seoul.
The US stations about 28,500 troops and military hardware in South Korea in combined defence against North Korea, which has pursued nuclear arms and ballistic missile development. The two Koreas remain technically at war under a truce.
Lee has said he aims to complete the transfer of the overall command of the combined US-South Korea allied forces at a time of war, a goal pursued by successive South Korean governments for decades, before his five-year term ends in 2030.
Such a change would mean a South Korean general rather than a US commander would lead allied South Korean and US forces in the event of a war with North Korea.
The allies have been discussing the readiness of the South Korean military to take on such a command, but there appears to be some disagreement.
Earlier this week, US Forces Korea commander General Xavier Brunson said that the security environment had changed since the allies established the transfer requirements.
South Korean media have reported that Seoul favours 2028 as the target year for the transfer, while Brunson told a US congressional hearing in April that the US military had submitted a roadmap to meet the conditions by early 2029.
