"There Will Be No Withdrawal of USFK After the Four-Party Talks," Senior Government Officials Say, Adding UNC Dissolution Is Not the Issue

[Financial News] The Lee Jae-myung administration has made it clear that USFK will not be withdrawn even after a four-party peace agreement is reached. However, the South Korean government has yet to come up with a meaningful alternative regarding whether the United Nations Command (UNC) should be dissolved. In his Liberation Day address on the 15th, President Lee Jae-myung proposed a four-party meeting involving the United States, South Korea, China, and North Korea to transform the 73-year-old Korean Armistice Agreement into a peace regime.
At a meeting with MOU reporters on the 21st, a senior government official said, "Even after a peace treaty is signed, USFK will remain stationed as it is." The official, who is regarded as a leading figure in the pro-autonomy camp, said that the continued presence of USFK after a peace regime would simply maintain the previous government's position. However, he stopped short of giving a clear answer on the dissolution of the UNC in South Korea.
When asked whether the UNC should also leave once a peace regime is established, the official replied, "We have not advanced that far yet."
He added, "I understand that the dissolution of the UNC is being discussed within the UNC, but it is not the issue."
If a four-nation peace regime, or end-of-war agreement, is concluded, the UNC would normally be expected to be dissolved afterward. The UNC has been responsible for enforcing and overseeing compliance with the Korean Armistice Agreement and managing the Korean Demilitarized Zone (DMZ). The commander of USFK also serves as Commander-in-Chief, United Nations Command. The fence along the DMZ would also have to be removed.
But given public sentiment that prioritizes security amid the North Korean nuclear crisis, a withdrawal of USFK is realistically impossible. If North Korea later demands the withdrawal of the UNC and USFK at the four-party peace talks, a difficult negotiation is expected.
The official also praised Donald Trump's North Korea policy. He said, "If President Trump secures a historic deal, it could be an achievement worthy of the Nobel Peace Prize." He also said it could help reduce the North Korean nuclear threat to the U.S. mainland.
The senior official said, "President Trump is the only leader among past U.S. presidents to have spoken with a North Korean leader. He is a leader who will not come around again." He also described the reduction of the ROK-US Combined Military Exercise as a bold decision. The official added, "Our people should make use of this opportunity opened by Trump's imperial-style diplomacy."
By contrast, he viewed the Obama administration's North Korea policy as a failure. The senior official said, "The exact opposite of Trump's North Korea policy was the Obama administration's 'strategic patience.' It was the worst thing for the Korean Peninsula. Yet paradoxically, it won the Nobel Peace Prize for a world without nuclear weapons. During that period, North Korea's nuclear capabilities advanced the most."

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