Yoon: S.Korea-U.S. alliance is a source of strength to deter N. Korea

Aug 24, 2023, 10:17 am

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President Yoon Suk Yeol poses for a group photo with Gen. Paul LaCamera, chief of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, and other participants after monitoring South Korea and the United States’ joint annual military exercise, the Ulchi Freedom Shield, during his visit to CP Tango, or Command Post Theater Air Naval Ground Operations, in Seongnam, south of Seoul, on Aug. 23, 2023./ Source: Presidential Office

AsiaToday reporter Hong Sun-mi

President Yoon Suk-yeol said on Wednesday that the overwhelming ability of the South Korea-US alliance will be a “source of strength” to firmly deter North Korea’s provocations.”

Yoon made the remarks during his visit to CP Tango, or Command Post Theater Air Naval Ground Operations, in Seongnam, south of Seoul, to examine South Korean and U.S. troops engaging in the annual joint military exercise, Ulchi Freedom Shield (UFS). Yoon said that North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats are the most serious threats that exist today, adding that provocations are becoming more sophisticated and diverse through cyberattacks and psychological warfare, according to his spokesperson Lee Do-woon.

It marks the first time since former President Park Geun-hye’s visit in 2013 that a sitting president has visited the wartime bunker nestled in the mountains. Yoon’s visit is interpreted as a visit to stress the capabilities of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, which has been strengthened since the Camp David Summit among South Korea, the United States and Japan, while sending a strong warning to North Korea’s successive provocations.

Stressing the importance of the alliance at this time, Yoon said, “The overwhelming capabilities of the alliance, along with joint training and drills of US and South Korean soldiers and solid mental preparation, are the source of strength to deter and to punish North Korea immediately and decisively in case of provocation.”

“CP Tango has served as a brain commanding three military branches of both countries during wartime since the establishment of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command in 1978,” Yoon said.

The president then thanked the soldiers for their dedication and hard work, saying that the combined exercise is “a symbol of the ironclad South Korea-U.S. military alliance.”

“This exercise is based on scenarios in which the North may use its nuclear weapons, and is focused on strengthening the crisis management and response capabilities of the South Korea-U.S. alliance, assuming that it enters a war within a short period of time,” Yoon said.

Stressing that the exercise was based on scenarios that reflects North Korea’s nuclear and missile capabilities and that some 8,000 South Korean and U.S. soldiers are conducting 38 outdoor maneuvers, Yoon said that “only practical exercises and training can further upgrade the strong joint defense posture of the S. Korea-U.S. alliance.”

Yoon stressed the need for Seoul and Washington to assume a strong response posture that combines nuclear and non-nuclear capabilities based on scenarios where the North may use its nuclear weapons.

#Yoon Suk-yeol #CP Tango