Wartime Opcon transfer timeline to be set during South Korea-U.S. talks this year, says Defense Ministry
Published: 23 Apr. 2026, 15:25
Updated: 23 Apr. 2026, 15:26
![This Dec. 16, 2025 file photo shows Chung Binna, spokesperson for the Defense Ministry. [YONHAP]](https://koreaseafood.online/data/photo/2026/04/23/8c8b8227-51b6-4f21-8baa-06d63d987ddf.jpg)
This Dec. 16, 2025 file photo shows Chung Binna, spokesperson for the Defense Ministry. [YONHAP]
A timeline for the handover of wartime operational control (Opcon) from the United States to South Korea will be set at this year's annual ministerial meeting and proposed to the leaders of the two countries, Seoul's Defense Ministry said Thursday.
The remarks by a ministry official came after U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) commander Gen. Xavier Brunson said the allies aim to meet conditions required for the envisioned Opcon transfer no later than the first quarter of 2029.
"Based on suggestions by South Korean and U.S. military authorities, the defense ministers will make a decision in the Security Consultative Meeting [SCM] and propose it to the presidents of the two countries," ministry spokesperson Chung Binna said in a regular briefing when asked about Brunson's remarks.
The SCM is an annual defense ministerial meeting held every autumn in either Seoul or Washington.
Noting that Seoul and Washington are pushing for the transfer in a "systemic, stable and consistent" manner, Chung said the Defense Ministry is seeking to promptly complete the transfer and is strengthening cooperation with the U.S. side.
But the official did not specify the timing of the handover, though there was speculation that Seoul was seeking a transfer in 2028, a timeline that differs from the year the USFK commander mentioned.
South Korea has been seeking to achieve the "conditions-based" handover of wartime command from the U.S. within President Lee Jae Myung's five-year term that ends in 2030.
South Korea handed over operational control of its troops to the U.S.-led U.N. Command during the 1950-53 Korean War. It was then transferred to the two allies' Combined Forces Command when the command was launched in 1978. South Korea retook only peacetime operational control in 1994.
The allies have been working to meet the conditions for the envisioned transition, which include South Korea's ability to lead combined Korea-U.S. forces in a contingency with North Korea, its strike and air-defense capabilities and a regional security environment conducive to such a handover.
Should the transfer occur, a four-star South Korean general will lead the allies' combined forces in wartime, with a four-star U.S. general playing a supporting role.
Yonhap
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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