South stops calling NK ‘main enemy’
Biennial defense white paper reflects inter-Korean peace
The Ministry of National Defense has removed its definition of North Korea as the “main enemy” in its latest defense white paper, reflecting of the ongoing inter-Korean reconciliation.
“The South Korean military considers any force threatening the nation’s sovereignty, territory and property as the enemy,” the ministry said in the biennial white paper, published Tuesday.
This is the first time since 2010 that the defense ministry dropped the term “enemy” when referring to North Korea in the paper.
The decision is in contrast to the previous version of the paper in which the ministry called North Korea the “primary security threat” against South Korea. The 2016 paper also stated the North Korean regime and its military forces will remain as a major security threat as long as the North continues its military provocations.
The ministry explained that the shifted stance against the North was in response to the regime’s steps for peace and denuclearization of the Korean Peninsula.
“Even if the two Koreas have repeated military confrontations and reconciliations, a new security environment has been established here following three rounds of inter-Korean summits and a U.S.-North Korea summit in 2018,” the paper said.
But the white paper also said the South views the North’s weapons of mass destruction as a potential threat to peace and stability .
“The military will also continue developing responsive capabilities against potential non-military threats, such as terrorism and cyberattacks,” the paper said.
The ministry’s shifted definition on North Korea, however, is raising a controversy here amid concerns that the decision may have a negative influence for the military to maintain its security readiness.
The unpredictable nature of the regime also comes as a major source of contention on the shifted definition of the North. Concerns are that the toned-down stance toward the North may reduce the South Korean military readiness to promptly deal with any potential provocations from the regime.
A military official said no other countries use “enemy” in their white papers, so the ministry’s decision to drop the terminology came in part against this backdrop.
“We have taken into account terminologies from the ministry’s overseas counterparts, but no countries have used such terms as “the enemy’in their white paperS,” the official said.
This has also cast an influence on the ministry’s recent decision to tone down provocative rhetoric against the North, according to the official.
Lingering threat from NK
According to the white paper, North Korea has launched a special unit dedicated to carrying out special military missions, such as the assassination of the South’s key figures.
In November 2016, North Korea reported the establishment of a special unit via its state-run propaganda outlets, such as the Rodong Sinmun and Korea Central Television (KCTV), the white paper said.
On top of that, the document stated Pyongyang has secured 50 kilograms of plutonium, which the ministry viewed shows the North holds capability to continue manufacturing nuclear weapons, according to the defense ministry.