Rumsfeld Heads for Sensitive Talks in South Korea

Sunday, November 16, 2003

(12:49 PM)

l'Agence France-Presse

Washington is proposing to pull back some 15,000 troops of the 2nd Infantry Division from the frontline with North Korea to bases south of Seoul, the South Korean capital. However, South Koreans, who have for long viewed forward-deployed US troops as a "trip-wire," have expressed concern about the speed of the changes and want to delay the relocation in view of public concern over security and financial costs.

SEOUL, South Korea -- AFP
US Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld will engage in annual security consultations here Monday that will focus on Iraq, North Korea, and plans to realign US forces in South Korea.

As Rumsfeld meets with top officials including Defense Minister Cho Young-Kil, South Korean anti-war activists, who demonstrated in downtown Seoul on Saturday, say they will stage more protest rallies.

They object to South Korean President Roh Moo-Hyun's decision announced Thursday to dispatch some 3,000 troops for reconstruction work in Iraq. Seoul has already sent 464 military engineers and medics to Iraq.

Roh's plan fell short of Washington's reported demand for more than 5,000 South Korean combat troops for stabilization duties in Iraq.

However Foreign Minister Yoon Young-Kwan indicated Friday that the 3,000-cap on the South Korean deployment may not be the last word.

"President Roh laid down an important guideline, but it was not a final decision," said Yoon, adding Seoul was "still in the middle of making a decision" on the issue.

(More: ChannelNewsAsia.com / Asia Pacific News)

2003 © l'Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Dan