U.N. Command’s Strong Message: Collective Defense Against North Korean Provocations

On the morning of the 14th, Minister of National Defense Shin Won-sik is delivering a welcome speech at the Korea-UN Member States Defense Ministers’ Meeting held at the Ministry of National Defense in Yongsan-gu, Seoul./Photo Joint Press Corps

After finishing the chairmanship of the Korea-UN Member States Defense Ministers’ Meeting, Minister of National Defense Shin Won-sik is moving to the conference room with participants from various countries, including US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin./Photo Joint Press Corps

Representatives from 17 UN Command member states, including the United States, the United Kingdom, and France, declared that they would respond collectively if actions threatening South Korea’s security were resumed on the Korean Peninsula, reconfirming the position that the armistice agreement signed in 1953 during the Korean War should continue.

According to the Ministry of National Defense on the 14th, the UN Command member states and defense ministers reaffirmed their commitment to ‘protecting peace on the Korean Peninsula’ and ‘strengthening cooperation and solidarity among UN Command member states’ through a joint statement at the UN Command member states defense ministers meeting held at the Ministry of National Defense building in Yongsan-gu, Seoul.

In the statement, they strongly condemned North Korea’s illegal nuclear and missile programs that violated numerous UN Security Council resolutions, calling for the international community’s role in stopping North Korea’s illegal activities. They added, “We will activate training between the Korea-US alliance and UN Command member states to deal with the current security threats.” It is interpreted as reaffirming that the spirit and promise of the 1953 armistice agreement are valid for the freedom and peacekeeping of the Korean Peninsula.

Concerning this, a high-ranking official from the Ministry of National Defense explained to reporters on the same day, “The armistice agreement signed between the two Koreas is just a temporary halt to the war,” and “The war has not ended, so the role of the UN Command must continue.” He added, “The UN Command is an organization with a military purpose, different from a general international conference body.”

Earlier, Minister of National Defense Shin Won-sik sent a warning message about North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats in a welcome speech at the Defense Ministers’ Meeting that morning. Minister Shin said, “If North Korea invades again, it will be a self-contradiction that a UN member state is attacking the UN Command and a serious betrayal of the international community.” He added, “If North Korea continues to provoke, a strong retaliation from the international community centered on the UN Command will follow.”

The UN Command was formed after North Korea’s invasion on June 25, 1950, and is responsible for managing the armistice agreement and supporting the Korea-US Combined Forces Command in an emergency. UN Command member states include 14 countries that sent combat troops during the Korean War, such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Turkey, Australia, the Philippines, Thailand, the Netherlands, Colombia, Greece, New Zealand, Belgium, France, and South Africa, and three countries that sent medical support teams, including Norway, Denmark, and Italy. This is the first meeting held by the defense ministers, and representatives of Korea and UN Command member states on the 70th anniversary of the signing of the armistice agreement.

By. Park Young Hun