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Defense Minister Yoon Gwang-ung (center) talks to representatives of the ruling Uri Party on August 16.
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The two plans will be combined into ’joint operation’
In preparation for regaining wartime operational control from the United States, the independent ’Wartime Operational Plan’ to be led by the Korean military will be combined with a separately drafted U.S. support plan, an official of the Ministry of National Defense said yesterday. "If the Korean military exercises wartime operational control independently, the current OPLAN 5027, a U.S.-led, ROK-U.S. joint operation plan to cope with North Korean attacks or accidental provocations, should be revised," the official said, declining to be named. "A measure to prepare a Korea-led wartime operational plan is underway, and the U.S. Forces Korea is establishing a separate support plan."Military officials explained that the separate plans will be combined into one master plan, and the two sides would establish an alternative institution for operational cooperation. Another high-ranking military official said, "Under present conditions, our plan should contain the same strategic goals as the U.S. Therefore, there will be no serious changes from the current OPLAN 5027 in terms of the broad framework." During a consultation meeting with the ruling Uri Party, Defense Minister Yoon Kwang-ung said, "When the two nations agree on the timetable for the operational control takeover, we will perform preparatory work and evaluations for three years, in order to ensure a perfect transfer. The transfer of wartime operational control requires a sustained U.S. presence on the Korean Peninsula and a sharing of intelligence information, to remove possible security vulnerabilities." Minister Yoon continued, "Following an agreement between defense ministers last October, the two allies are in the smooth process of drafting a road map for the wartime control takeover and will report [the results] to their respective defense ministers."
