U.S. welcomes Korean aid to Afghanistan task
Published: 02 Nov. 2009, 00:32
WASHINGTON - The United States Friday welcomed South Korea’s plans to reinforce its civilian reconstruction team in Afghanistan and to send an unspecified number of troops to protect them.
The South Korean Foreign Ministry announced earlier in the day that it has decided to send a Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) to Afghanistan aside from its 25-member medical team currently operating in the war-ravaged Central Asian nation.
Ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young also said the PRT will be accompanied by South Korean troops to ensure their security.
Moon did not specify the size of the PRT or the number of troops, but Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said earlier this week that Seoul was considering sending a 130-strong PRT, and Defense Ministry officials have estimated the number of troops at 300.
“This is an important contribution to the international effort in Afghanistan and to fostering reconstruction and stability in the region,” White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said. “The U.S. will continue to work closely in partnership with Korea as we support the people and government of Afghanistan.”
The announcement for the PRT and troop dispatch comes just a couple of weeks before U.S. President Barack Obama’s planned visit to South Korea. Obama is under pressure by the U.S. military to dispatch 40,000 more troops to Afghanistan, where the Taliban insurgency is gaining power, despite the presence of about 68,000 American troops already there.
“The government of the ROK has stated that it made this decision in response to the government of Afghanistan’s request for assistance,” State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said in a statement. “The Korean government made its own determination regarding the assistance it can provide.”
Kelly lauded Seoul’s decision as having reflected its “growing commitment to addressing problems of global concern. We consider the ROK to be a vital partner in such efforts. “We are confident that this assistance will be of great value to the people of Afghanistan.”
South Korea withdrew more than 200 military medics and engineers from Afghanistan in 2007 after 23 South Korean Christian missionaries were held captive. Two of them were killed and the rest released after the Seoul government pledged to withdraw the troops by the end of that year. South Korea currently maintains 25 medical civilians at a U.S. base in Afghanistan.
Geoff Morrell, Pentagon spokesman, said Thursday the U.S. hoped South Korea will make contributions to Afghanistan commensurate to its national power.
“In Japan’s case, they’re the second-largest economy in the world. In Korea’s case, a top-15 economy in the world,” Morrell said. “There is a certain responsibility that comes with countries of that power and that wealth, to contribute to this international effort in Afghanistan. And so we are welcoming of whether it be additional forces, or money, or PRTs, or expertise. Any and all would be appreciated.”
Yu, South Korea’s top diplomat, has said that increased aid to Afghanistan by South Korea is linked to the stable deployment of 28,500 U.S. troops in the Korean Peninsula, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.
Yu made the remarks just days after Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told U.S. soldiers at Yongsan Army Garrison in Seoul last Thursday that discussions are under way about rotating U.S. troops in South Korea, although he said, “I certainly wouldn’t expect this to happen in the near future.”
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in Seoul last week that South Koreans themselves will make any decision on troop deployments or any other form of aid to Afghanistan.
Gates, however, also said, “I see a different dynamic and logic to Korea’s international military role today. In the past, deployments were considered something that Korea was doing for the United States.
Yonhap
The South Korean Foreign Ministry announced earlier in the day that it has decided to send a Provincial Reconstruction Team (PRT) to Afghanistan aside from its 25-member medical team currently operating in the war-ravaged Central Asian nation.
Ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young also said the PRT will be accompanied by South Korean troops to ensure their security.
Moon did not specify the size of the PRT or the number of troops, but Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan said earlier this week that Seoul was considering sending a 130-strong PRT, and Defense Ministry officials have estimated the number of troops at 300.
“This is an important contribution to the international effort in Afghanistan and to fostering reconstruction and stability in the region,” White House spokesman Robert Gibbs said. “The U.S. will continue to work closely in partnership with Korea as we support the people and government of Afghanistan.”
The announcement for the PRT and troop dispatch comes just a couple of weeks before U.S. President Barack Obama’s planned visit to South Korea. Obama is under pressure by the U.S. military to dispatch 40,000 more troops to Afghanistan, where the Taliban insurgency is gaining power, despite the presence of about 68,000 American troops already there.
“The government of the ROK has stated that it made this decision in response to the government of Afghanistan’s request for assistance,” State Department spokesman Ian Kelly said in a statement. “The Korean government made its own determination regarding the assistance it can provide.”
Kelly lauded Seoul’s decision as having reflected its “growing commitment to addressing problems of global concern. We consider the ROK to be a vital partner in such efforts. “We are confident that this assistance will be of great value to the people of Afghanistan.”
South Korea withdrew more than 200 military medics and engineers from Afghanistan in 2007 after 23 South Korean Christian missionaries were held captive. Two of them were killed and the rest released after the Seoul government pledged to withdraw the troops by the end of that year. South Korea currently maintains 25 medical civilians at a U.S. base in Afghanistan.
Geoff Morrell, Pentagon spokesman, said Thursday the U.S. hoped South Korea will make contributions to Afghanistan commensurate to its national power.
“In Japan’s case, they’re the second-largest economy in the world. In Korea’s case, a top-15 economy in the world,” Morrell said. “There is a certain responsibility that comes with countries of that power and that wealth, to contribute to this international effort in Afghanistan. And so we are welcoming of whether it be additional forces, or money, or PRTs, or expertise. Any and all would be appreciated.”
Yu, South Korea’s top diplomat, has said that increased aid to Afghanistan by South Korea is linked to the stable deployment of 28,500 U.S. troops in the Korean Peninsula, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War.
Yu made the remarks just days after Adm. Michael Mullen, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, told U.S. soldiers at Yongsan Army Garrison in Seoul last Thursday that discussions are under way about rotating U.S. troops in South Korea, although he said, “I certainly wouldn’t expect this to happen in the near future.”
Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in Seoul last week that South Koreans themselves will make any decision on troop deployments or any other form of aid to Afghanistan.
Gates, however, also said, “I see a different dynamic and logic to Korea’s international military role today. In the past, deployments were considered something that Korea was doing for the United States.
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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