South Korea Pushes for Wartime Control, Bolsters Capital Air Defence

Ahn made the visit to the Capital Defence Command in southern Seoul, where he urged the command to focus on its "innate mission" in order to restore public trust, according to the ministry.

"Now is the time to move beyond the scars of the December 3 insurrection and, with a spirit of self-reliance, devote ourselves to the core mission of defending the capital," he said, Yonhap News Agency reported.

The defence chief also visited the Joint Air Defence Operations Center to inspect the air defence posture following the recent relocation of the presidential office.

Ahn also paid a visit to an anti-terrorism unit under the command and urged it to maintain a readiness posture against terror threats.

On January 28, Ahn Gyu-back reiterated the commitment to regaining wartime operational control (OPCON) of South Korean troops from Washington, vowing to accelerate efforts this year for the planned transfer.

Ahn made the remarks during a meeting with about 170 key defence ministry officials, military chiefs and related officials to review progress on the OPCON transfer push.

South Korea seeks to retake OPCON, currently held by the United States, on a conditional basis within South Korean President Lee Jae Myung's five-year term ending in 2030.

"The year 2026 should mark the starting year for restoration of wartime operational control," Ahn said. "Through the OPCON transfer, our military will be equipped with an ever stronger military readiness posture based on six component commands, leading a powerful South Korea-US alliance that is unprecedented in world history."

The ministry plans to draw up a roadmap for the OPCON transfer by April, followed by verification of Seoul's Full Operational Capability (FOC) by October, before ultimately selecting the timing for the actual transfer, according to Ahn and his military.

Seoul seeks to determine the transfer timing after the defence ministers of South Korea and the US finally approve the verification of the FOC at their next Security Consultative Meeting in October.

FOC refers to the second part of a three-stage program to assess Seoul's capabilities to lead the allies' combined forces for the retaking of wartime control. Seoul is currently in the second phase of the assessment required for the transfer.

The defence ministry said it will hold the OPCON transfer progress assessment meeting every quarter this year, up from once a year previously, in a bid to complete the FOC verification process within this year as planned.

- IANS