The transfer of wartime command authority between the United States and South Korea is stuck. South Korean officials: Repeated conditions may delay indefinitely

South Korea took back the peacetime operational command of its military in 1994, but the operational command of the U.S.-South Korean coalition forces in wartime is still controlled by the "South Korea-U.S. Joint Command" headed by the United States. South Korean Defense Ministry spokesperson Chung Bin-na (transliteration) said on the 15th that if the conditions for the transfer of wartime operational command from the United States continue to be changed, the transfer may never be completed.

According to Reuters, Zheng Guangna said at a regular press conference, "Speaking in a personal capacity, I believe that if conditions change repeatedly, wartime operational command will never be transferred." She said that this statement did not represent the official position of the Ministry of National Defense. The position of the Ministry of National Defense remains that the United States and South Korea will cooperate closely to promote relevant work based on the transfer plan mutually agreed upon by both parties and based on conditions.

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Before Zheng Guangna made these remarks, General Xavier Brunson, commander of the US military in South Korea, pointed out on the 14th that since the United States and South Korea established conditions for the transfer of wartime operational command authority, the security environment and operational plans have changed. "Because conditions have changed and we have adjusted our plans, there are new standards. These are standards that we must abide by," Brownson told an event in Washington hosted by the Gold Institute for International Strategy.

Bronson pointed to North Korea's recent missile launches as evidence of the changing security environment. Brunson said he supported the transfer but opposed bypassing agreed-upon requirements and stressed that South Korea must have key military capabilities.

In addition, US media reported that the United States believes that South Korea has not yet met the standards for completing the verification of "full operational capability" (FOC), which is the second of the three stages of the wartime operational command transfer process. South Korean President Lee Jae-myung said he aims to complete the handover, which has been pushed for decades by successive governments, before the end of his term.