South Korea thinks the US is their own personal peacekeeping force. There are currently 30,000 US troops in South Korea. The South Korean population do not want us there and protest often and loudly against the US presence. On the other hand the citizenry do like US dollars. When the US attempts to draw down it’s presence South Korean’s sue! Yes, they sue for their union contracts. I do realize there are South Koreans who want the US to stay and aren’t virulently anti-American. But the youth population in South Korea are anti-American and resent our presence.

Read here - Korean Union recommends strike at US installations

In 2005, South Korean’s were protesting for the removal of the statue of Gen. Douglas McArthur.

South Korea - An Ungrateful Nation

SEOUL, South Korea — Five U.S. lawmakers have written South Korea’s president to express concern at protests calling for the removal of a statue of U.S. Gen. Douglas MacArthur from Inchon, the coastal city where he led a daring landing during the Korean War.

< …..>The 15-foot statue was built in 1957 to commemorate the landing by MacArthur-led U.N. forces in September 1950, just months after North Korea invaded the South.

The landing, then behind North Korean lines, gave the U.S.-led forces a foothold that allowed them to drive the Northern army across the border. China later entered the war on the North’s side, pushing the U.N. forces back. The conflict ended in a stalemate in 1953.

A little over a year ago South Korea was talking about taking back control of their defenses, I don’t know why the US doesn’t make this happen now? As it stands, the South Korean’s undermine the US in talks with North Korea all the time by doing under the table deals with Kim Jung Il (aka Zippersuit Man).

From a little over a year ago - South Korea - Lets give them wartime control, in fact, lets get the US out in total

In a joint statement Thursday, the country’s 17 former defense ministers said they were “shocked” by Roh’s comments. They demanded a halt to the talks on changing the wartime command, which “will certainly unravel the alliance and lead to the withdrawal of U.S. troops.”

Under the plan being discussed by the United States and South Korea, the combined forces command - to old South Koreans, a symbol of U.S. commitment to defending their country, but to younger generations, a painful reminder of a foreign military influence - will be disbanded.

The U.S. military will stay on, perhaps in reduced numbers, and play a supporting role, officials say. South Korea wants to take back the authority for wartime combat by 2012. The Pentagon says South Korea can have the authority back by 2009.

Roh said Wednesday that anytime in between those dates would be fine; indeed, he said, Seoul could take it back “even now.”

Here’s what’s being discussed today:

South Korea wants U.S. troops to continue to stay on the Korean peninsula to play a peacekeeping role in Northeast Asia after the divided Koreas replace the armistice with a peace agreement, Foreign Minister Song Min-soon said Friday.

“The U.S. forces in Korea will maintain their presence on the Korean Peninsula even after a peace agreement is signed and continue to carry out a role that would serve the changed security needs in Northeast Asia,” Song told a seminar here on the “Vision and Tasks for Establishing a Peace Regime on the Korean Peninsula.”

Washington currently maintains some 30,000 troops in South Korea, a legacy of the 1950-53 Korean War. The two Koreas technically remain in a state of war as the fratricidal war ended only with a ceasefire.

President Roh Moo-hyun and his North Korean counterpart Kim Jong-il agreed earlier this month to begin negotiations involving one or two other “directly involved nations,” namely the two Koreas, the United States and/or China, to officially end the war.

The talks to replace the Korean armistice with a peace regime have yet to start, but Song claimed what he called a “practical process” to that end has already started though a more formal process to sign a peace pact may come some time later.

While noting the denuclearization of North Korea is a prerequisite to signing a peace agreement with the communist state, Song said the process to denuclearize the North, thereby toward a peace regime, “is already moving forward.”

How about, South Korea request the United Nations provide the peace keeping duties? After all, the world seems to believe that the UN has the moral authority over the United States. Besides, isn’t the new UN Secretary General from South Korea? I’m sure the UN Peace Keeping force would welcome a new country to conduct their food for sex operations, Africa is getting a bit old to them.  Or maybe the UN bureaucrats are looking for a new country to plunder and pillage with graft and corruption.  Oh, that’s right, the UN already has a corruption program with North Korea, that means they just have to add South Korea.

Technorati Tags: South Korea, North Korea, UN, United Nations, US, Military, Korean Peninsula, Kim Jung II, Zippersuit Man

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