[Yulgok-ro] MDTF deployment in the West Sea to shake up Asia’s security landscape

Blatant Chinese surveillance signals when stationed in Pyeongtaek and Gunsan... Possibility of deploying ‘Dark Eagle’

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Senior Reporter Seungwoo Lee = The U.S. Army Multi-Domain Special Task Force (MDTF) is moving to deploy to the western sea of the Korean Peninsula. Local U.S. media, citing Army officials, reported that the 2nd MDTF in Germany was moving to Korea, and the U.S. Department of Defense did not deny this. The prediction that the MDTF would be stationed in Korea as part of the United States' change in global strategy and reallocation of power was no longer 'news' among security experts. If the MDTF deployment in Korea is realized, it could be a historic event that will not only cause a huge change in the Asian security landscape, but also affect the entire world order, including the struggle for hegemony between the United States and China.

MDTF is a cutting-edge new concept unit that breaks away from the existing division- and brigade-centered organization and integrates and deploys firepower in various areas such as space, maritime, air, cyber, electronic warfare, and hypersonics. It is a 'game changer' for future warfare ambitiously implemented by the US Army, which is undergoing the largest military reorganization since the Cold War. In particular, the MDTF was created to neutralize the anti-access and area denial (A2/AD) strategies of main enemy China and major threat Russia. A2·AD is the best strategy established by China and Russia to counter the all-out war capabilities of the U.S. military, which is superior to their own. In the event of a conflict with the U.S. military, the concept is to suppress from a distance before entering the operational area and capture enemies that have infiltrated the area with a shower of missiles. It is the last bastion against the United States before using nuclear power.

If you want to catch an enemy that can't even come near your neighborhood, you have no choice but to turn your eyes and ears blind. Therefore, MDTF acts as a 'joint command center' that paralyzes enemy air defense networks and communications through cyber warfare and space warfare, and then destroys key targets with hypersonic and precision missiles. It is an ambitious attempt to bring the Army, which had fallen behind the Navy and Air Force due to its reduced role in ground warfare, back to the center of the war. Currently, the MDTF operates three units in Washington state, Germany, and Hawaii, but if the entire German MDTF moves to Korea, it will be concentrated only in the Asia-Pacific theater. This is in line with the trend of focusing all global strategic goals on keeping China in check. The United States has already sent several signals to Europe to defend itself against Russian threats.

Considering the possibility that the deployment of the MDTF in Korea is part of the United States' global hegemony strategy and the comprehensive stationing authority of the U.S. military as stipulated in the ROK-U.S. Mutual Defense Treaty, it may ultimately be a matter of timing for the U.S. to implement it. If a decision is made on deployment, working-level discussions between South Korea and the United States are expected to cover the size of the MDTF, its station, the nature of subordinate units, and the weapons to be deployed. Currently, there is a strong theory that the transfer will be carried out in stages starting with the Multi-Domain Effects Battalion (MDEB), the brain of the MDTF. Weapons are also expected to be increased one by one, starting with the less threatening ones, considering the friction with China. Pyeongtaek or Gunsan on the west coast are most likely to be the station, given that the purpose of this unit is to keep China in check.

Above all, the worst-case scenario for China is that the MDTF deployment in the West Sea results in the deployment of the hypersonic missile 'Dark Eagle'. It is known that the Dark Eagle, which is currently considered one of the strongest non-nuclear strike weapons, flies at an unofficial maximum speed of Mach 17 and maneuvers irregularly, so it cannot be intercepted by the current air defense networks of China and Russia. It is the strongest missile among the MDTF's possessions, but even if the unit comes to Korea, it will not be forced to bring it from the beginning. However, China cannot help but worry about the possibility that the deployment of the MDTF in the West Sea is ultimately a prelude to the deployment of the Dark Eagle. If these weapons were deployed across China's east coast, they could destroy Beijing in just 5 to 10 minutes. A so-called 'decapitating strike' becomes possible, and the Chinese leadership loses the 'golden time' to respond. The MDTF can be used not only for attacks but also as a guard post to monitor the movements of the Chinese leadership and military.

China cannot sit idly by and watch this crisis. In the near future, a backlash from China may intensify the conflict between the U.S. and China and increase tensions in East Asia. Even when deploying the defensive Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) missile defense system, China showed extreme allergic reactions and unfairly pressured us instead of the United States. Therefore, if an attack command center that threatens Beijing is established right under our noses, there is a high possibility that it will not only carry out sabotage operations and impose economic and cultural sanctions, but also mobilize all of its human and material networks in Korea to divide public opinion. There have already been reports that some of the MDTF's subordinates entered Korea as an advance team, raising China's nerves. What is clear is that East Asia is already engulfed in tension just by the news that the MDTF deployment in Korea is being promoted. Now, South Korea may be being redefined beyond being a defense base against North Korea and as the forefront of the US-China hegemony competition.