U.S. and South Korea Reshape UN Command for New North Korea Threats

The UN Command, launched in the wake of the Korean War, has embarked on a full-scale reorganization for the first time in over 70 years.

South Korea, a UN member country, has secured another ‘soda jar cooperation body’ for strengthening deterrence against North Korea, and the United States, the actual overall control country of the UN, has done so to defend the rules-based international order.

Representatives of UN member countries, including Minister of National Defense Suh Wook and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin, held the first Korea-UN Defense Ministers’ Meeting at the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan on the 14th.

This is the first time in over 70 years since the UN was formed under the UN Security Council resolution introduced after the Korean War that related countries have gathered together again to express their willingness to cooperate.

The current UN member countries are composed of 14 countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Turkey, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand, the Netherlands, Colombia, Greece, New Zealand, Belgium, France, and the Republic of South Africa, which sent combat troops during the Korean War, and three countries, including Norway, Denmark, and Italy, which sent medical support teams. All 17 defense ministers and representatives attended this meeting without fail.

Minister of National Defense Suh Wook is giving a welcoming speech at the Korea-UN Member Countries Defense Ministers’ Meeting held at the Ministry of National Defense in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 14th. ⓒ Joint Press Corps

From the perspective of South Korea, which has been focusing on strengthening deterrence against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats, the ‘reconfirmation of the UN’s joint response’ is considered a significant achievement. It is evaluated that another ‘safety net’ at the international community level has been secured along with the Korea-U.S. alliance and Korea-U.S.-Japan security cooperation.

The joint statement released immediately after the meeting stated that “if hostile acts or armed attacks threatening the security of the Republic of Korea on the Korean Peninsula against the principles of the UN are resumed by UN member countries, they will respond jointly.”

This is a reconfirmation of the decision made by the countries that sent combat troops to Korea through the ‘Washington Declaration’ in 1953 that ‘if a similar situation in Korea recurs, they will participate in the war again.’

A senior official of the Ministry of National Defense mentioned the contents of the Washington Declaration 70 years ago, saying, “It means that all member countries have reconfirmed such a promise.”

Minister Suh also said in his welcoming speech at the meeting, “If North Korea invades again illegally, it is a contradiction that a UN member country is attacking the UN. There can only be a strong retaliation from the international community centered on the UN.”

Minister of National Defense Suh Wook and U.S. Secretary of Defense Lloyd Austin ⓒ Joint Press Corps

It is also evaluated that the reorganization of the UN Command is of great significance from the perspective of the United States, which has staked its strategic competition with China. As the U.S. is seeking to strengthen cooperation between allies and friendly nations scattered in Asia and Europe based on the ‘integrated deterrence’ concept, it is expected that the UN Command can play a significant role.

Suppose Germany, which was involved in the Korean War, is added to the list of member countries according to the expansion policy of the UN member countries by Korea and the U.S. In that case, it is expected to strengthen the cohesion between the U.S.’s Asian and European allies.

The Korea-UN joint statement also states, “We have decided to continuously increase mutual exchange and cooperation by activating joint exercises and training between the Korea-U.S. alliance and UN member countries to cope with current security threats.”

The ‘UN spirit’ emphasis at this Korea-UN meeting is also interpreted in the same context.

Minister Suh said the meeting will be a “strong warning to countries or groups that reject the rules-based international order and attempt to change the status quo by force.”

A senior official of the Ministry of National Defense said, “Today, not only the Korean Peninsula but also other countries talked about it according to the security environment they are facing. What penetrates is the spirit of the UN. It refers to international norms and rules-based international order. It’s about things that violate the spirit of the UN in discussing the UN Command.”

The senior official, in response to a question about whether the U.S. is conducting UN Command-related consultations as a stepping stone to contain China, said that the international community is currently divided into democratic and authoritarian states and said, “If we build a system well on the Korean Peninsula, there will be a stepping stone to contribute indirectly to the U.S. Indo-Pacific strategy.”