S. Korea, U.S. pushing to test new war plan against N. Korea

(ATTN: RECASTS lead; UPDATES with details, comments throughout)
By Sam Kim
SEOUL, Feb. 11 (Yonhap) -- South Korea and the United States are pushing to
introduce a new war plan against North Korean invasion when they hold their
annual joint military exercise this summer, a defense official said Wednesday.
About 28,500 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea as a deterrent against the
communist North after the 1950-53 Korean War ended in a ceasefire rather than a
peace treaty.
The South, which has a 660,000-strong military, relinquished the operational
control of its troops to the U.S.-led United Nations command immediately after
the war broke out.
It received back its peacetime control from the U.S. in 1994, but the wartime
command remains to be returned in 2012, as Washington moves forward with its
global troop realignment project.
The new war plan is being drafted to reflect the change in the decades-old
military alliance and will be tested during the annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian
exercise in August, South Korean brigadier general Chun In-bum told reporters.
"We hope to complete the creation of the operation plan by July," said Chun, who
oversees the transition at the Ministry of National Defense.
The existing war plan, OPLAN 5027, will remain effective during the other two key
joint drills -- Key Resolve and Foal Eagle -- until 2011, he added. The plan
calls for the U.S. deployment of up to 690,000 troops to the divided peninsula if
an armed conflict arises.
Chun did not give specifics on the new plan because it was still being
formulated. The scale of U.S. deployment is unlikely to change much, he said,
guaranteeing "a level that will ensure the defense of South Korea."
South Korea and the U.S. plan to dissolve the Combined Forces Command in 2012,
but will keep their command unified in intelligence and aerial operations,
according to officials.
The tentatively named Combined Air Command will be controlled by an American
commander, who will be directed by the South Korean chairman of the Joint Chiefs
of Staff, Chun said.
A 400-strong joint group will be formed to link the South Korean military command
with its U.S. counterpart on the peninsula after the full transfer of operational
control, Chun added.
North Korea has a 1.2-million-strong military, according to the South Korean
defense ministry. The Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercise, which began last year, is
aimed at coordinating the warfighting capabilities of South Korea and the U.S.,
testing their cutting-edge weapons and intelligence systems.
Critics have said OPLAN 5027 lacks measures against nuclear warfare. North Korea,
which remains in a months-long stalemate in international talks aimed at ending
its nuclear weapons programs, detonated its first atomic device 2006.
samkim@yna.co.kr
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