ID :
27037
Tue, 10/28/2008 - 16:30
Auther :
Shortlink :
https://www.oananews.org//node/27037
The shortlink copeid
S. Korea mulls expanded role in Afghanistan By Lee Chi-dong
SEOUL, Oct. 28 (Yonhap) -- The outgoing Bush administration put forward "several proposals" on South Korea's future role in Afghanistan, including the dispatch of police officers as well as cash and material aid, a South Korean government official said Tuesday.
But the official indicated Seoul would not hurry to make a decision ahead of the
U.S. presidential elections slated for Nov. 4.
"We are reviewing the options proposed by the U.S., and we also have our own
ideas," the senior government official said on condition of anonymity.
He added the five to six options under consideration include providing cash or
material aid and sending police officers to help train their Afghan counterparts.
The official provided no more details, apparently due to the sensitivity of the
issue.
South Korea's Lee Myung-bak government, which favors a stronger alliance with the
U.S., has been pressed to expand its contributions to the troubled campaign to
stabilize post-war Afghanistan.
U.S. President George W. Bush, after an August summit in Seoul with President
Lee, told reporters, "I asked him to consider as much non-combat help as possible
to help this young democracy."
Bush's words spawned media speculation here that he might urge Seoul to
re-dispatch noncombatants to Afghanistan.
South Korea withdrew about 200 military medics and engineers from Afghanistan at
the end of last year, ending their six-year mission just months after 23 South
Korean church workers were kidnapped by the Taliban. Two of the hostages were
eventually executed, while the rest were released following Seoul's promise to
withdraw its troops from the country by year's end as scheduled. A South Korean
soldier was also killed in a terrorist bombing in February of last year in
Bagram, about 80km north of Kabul.
To compensate for the troop pullout, South Korea has maintained a civilian-led
Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT), composed of about two dozen medical staff
and vocational training experts in the region.
"For now, we are not considering resending any troops to Afghanistan," the
official said. "A final decision on how South Korea will make more contributions
to Afghanistan will be made after the U.S. elections."
He dismissed speculation that Seoul's delayed decision might be aimed at giving a
political gift to the new U.S. administration.
The Democratic candidate Barack Obama, who leads his Republican rival John McCain
in most polls, has said he views Afghanistan as the most important battlefield in
the global fight against terrorism.
"We have not deliberately waited for the elections. The U.S. government's demands
have changed many times in accordance with the situation in Afghanistan," he
said.
The official hinted that South Korea may time an announcement on its new role in
the war-torn country with the withdrawal of its troops from northern Iraq, slated
for December. "We have to view the two issues together, not separately, in terms
of contributions to the U.S. and international efforts," he said.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
But the official indicated Seoul would not hurry to make a decision ahead of the
U.S. presidential elections slated for Nov. 4.
"We are reviewing the options proposed by the U.S., and we also have our own
ideas," the senior government official said on condition of anonymity.
He added the five to six options under consideration include providing cash or
material aid and sending police officers to help train their Afghan counterparts.
The official provided no more details, apparently due to the sensitivity of the
issue.
South Korea's Lee Myung-bak government, which favors a stronger alliance with the
U.S., has been pressed to expand its contributions to the troubled campaign to
stabilize post-war Afghanistan.
U.S. President George W. Bush, after an August summit in Seoul with President
Lee, told reporters, "I asked him to consider as much non-combat help as possible
to help this young democracy."
Bush's words spawned media speculation here that he might urge Seoul to
re-dispatch noncombatants to Afghanistan.
South Korea withdrew about 200 military medics and engineers from Afghanistan at
the end of last year, ending their six-year mission just months after 23 South
Korean church workers were kidnapped by the Taliban. Two of the hostages were
eventually executed, while the rest were released following Seoul's promise to
withdraw its troops from the country by year's end as scheduled. A South Korean
soldier was also killed in a terrorist bombing in February of last year in
Bagram, about 80km north of Kabul.
To compensate for the troop pullout, South Korea has maintained a civilian-led
Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT), composed of about two dozen medical staff
and vocational training experts in the region.
"For now, we are not considering resending any troops to Afghanistan," the
official said. "A final decision on how South Korea will make more contributions
to Afghanistan will be made after the U.S. elections."
He dismissed speculation that Seoul's delayed decision might be aimed at giving a
political gift to the new U.S. administration.
The Democratic candidate Barack Obama, who leads his Republican rival John McCain
in most polls, has said he views Afghanistan as the most important battlefield in
the global fight against terrorism.
"We have not deliberately waited for the elections. The U.S. government's demands
have changed many times in accordance with the situation in Afghanistan," he
said.
The official hinted that South Korea may time an announcement on its new role in
the war-torn country with the withdrawal of its troops from northern Iraq, slated
for December. "We have to view the two issues together, not separately, in terms
of contributions to the U.S. and international efforts," he said.
lcd@yna.co.kr
(END)
