[Column] UN Command stands at a crossroads

The UNC needs to be more than just a relic of the Cold War

Kim Young-jun

By Kim Young-jun, Professor at the Korea National Defense University and International Senior Research Fellow at the US Army’s Foreign Military Studies Office

Now that President Joe Biden is in power, many are asking what should be done to improve the relationship between South Korea and the US.

South Korea and the US are “blood brothers” who fought together in the Korean War. As the head of the United Nations Command (UNC), the US led troops from UN member states to shed their blood in a land many had never heard of.

For that reason, Koreans remember the UN forces with gratitude. The question of what becomes of the UNC, both now and in the future, in terms of South Korea-US relations is of crucial importance to peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula.

Today, the UNC is at the center of controversy over two issues. The first has to do with returning the wartime operational control (OPCON) of South Korean troops to the South Korean government. The UNC became more active during the Obama administration, prompting a debate among South Korean academics and policy makers about whether the US would try to use the UNC to retain battlefield initiative on the Korean Peninsula even after the OPCON transfer.

The second debate is whether the UNC has hindered and blocked inter-Korean exchange during efforts to advance the Korean Peninsula peace process. That debate arose after the UNC squashed several small-scale attempts at inter-Korean exchange following the Panmunjom Declaration and the Pyongyang Joint Declaration. South Korean attitudes toward the UNC have changed amid a debate about whether the UNC should be maintained when a peace treaty is eventually concluded between the Korean War combatants.

Former US officials hope that UNC will remain cherished

US views about the UNC are rarely encountered in official venues or public seminars. Candid conversations with private friends are a good chance to trade opinions about such sensitive issues.

I’d like to mention three memorable conversations I’ve had on this topic. The first occurred during a private dinner with Robert Gallucci, former US ambassador; the second during a closed-door dinner with former ambassador Joseph Yun; and the third during a dinner following my visit to the office of Canadian Lieutenant General Wayne Eyre, former deputy commander of the UNC, in Pyeongtaek, South Korea. While I can’t reveal all the details of these conversations, all three figures shared their hope that the UNC would continue to be cherished by Koreans in the future, just as it was during the Korean War.

Unlike the United Nations, the UNC is under the effective control of the US Joint Chiefs of Staff. Fundamentally, the UNC is charged with handling military affairs so as to keep the peace on the Korean Peninsula and ensure that the armistice agreement is obeyed.

Therefore, the UNC isn’t supposed to step outside of military affairs and block political moves or acts of state by South Korea or the US that are aimed at shifting fundamental policy in the pursuit of peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula. The US Joint Chiefs of Staff isn’t above the US President.

Put another way, since the UNC’s raison d’etre is maintaining peace and deterring conflict on the Korean Peninsula, it can’t block state policies made by higher-ranking officials that conform to those goals.

UNC should play bigger role in promoting peace

The UNC should act in a manner befitting its role of supporting peace and prosperity on the Korean Peninsula. The UNC has been warmly remembered by Koreans for its dedication and contributions to defending peace on the Korean Peninsula during the Korean War. In the future, it needs to help bring about a major shift toward the peace and prosperity for which Koreans yearn.

More recently, the UNC has been criticized for blocking access to the Demilitarized Zone and for refusing to grant requests to cross the Military Demarcation Line. Indeed, Koreans have begun to view the UNC as an obstacle to the Korean Peninsula Peace Process.

The UNC needs to ponder why many South Koreans believe it’s impeding the establishment of peace on the Korean Peninsula and restricting the sovereignty of the South Korean government. If the UNC is to keep playing an important role even after the signing of a peace treaty, it needs to become a major player in the Korean Peninsula peace process and a symbol of peace on the Korean Peninsula, rather than remaining a relic of the Cold War.

Please direct comments or questions to [english@hani.co.kr]