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Military to upgrade command, control system for combined Korea-U.S. operations

Published: 04 Aug. 2025, 11:26

Apache choppers are ready to take off at U.S. Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, on Aug. 12, 2024. [YONHAP]

South Korea's military plans to upgrade a command and control system for combined South Korea-U.S. operations to better prepare for the potential transition of wartime operational control (Opcon) from Washington to Seoul, the state arms procurement agency said Monday.

Under the 117.8 billion won ($84.9 million) project, the Defense Acquisition Program Administration plans to upgrade and fully operationalize the Allied Korean Joint Command and Control System (AKJCCS) by 2029, according to the Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA).

The upgrade, which comes 10 years after the system was first deployed, will focus on strengthening the system's security and enhancing information-sharing and communications functions, such as auto translation and teleconference features, according to DAPA.

When completed, the upgrade is expected to enable a more stable connection of the homegrown AKJCCS to the U.S. Combined Enterprise Regional Information Exchange System - Korea network.

Seoul and Washington had agreed on the Opcon transfer in 2015, but it was postponed after they agreed in 2014 to a conditions-based handover, rather than a timeline-based one, due to North Korea's evolving nuclear and missile threats.

Last month, Seoul's Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back said he believes President Lee Jae Myung's government aims to retake Opcon during its five-year term. The presidential office immediately clarified that the remarks were his personal opinion.

Yonhap