Former US Forces Korea commanders being linked to the post of US ambassador to Seoul is fueling speculations Washington could resume a hard-line stance on North Korea, should the planned summit fail to bring results.
According to sources in Washington and Seoul, former USFK Commander James Thurman and his predecessor Walter Sharp have been considered as candidates to fill the ambassadorship that has been vacant for more than a year.
In light of US President Donald Trump’s preference for military officers in civilian posts, the move could signal that Trump may resume his tough stance if his meeting with North Korea’s leader Kim Jong-un ends without significant results on denuclearization, analysts say.
“It could be seen as a sign that Washington is trying to come up with a plan B for North Korea,” said Kim Dae-young, research fellow at Korea Research Institute for National Strategy, Seoul-based security research institute.
Former USFK Commander James Thurman. Yonhap
Sharp, who served from 2008 to 2011, and Thurman, who served from 2011 to 2013, were in South Korea at a time when Pyongyang staged multiple cross-border military provocations that killed 50 South Korean soldiers and civilians.
The deadly provocations include the sinking of a South Korean naval vessel in March 2010 and the shelling of the island of Yeonpyeongdo in October 2010 both of which occurred when Sharp was in uniform.
During Thurman‘s watch, from 2011 to 2013, North Korea conducted missile launches and underground nuclear tests. Months before Thurman’s retirement in October, the North threated to terminate the armistice agreement that brought an end to the Korean War with a cease-fire, not a peace treaty.
“Of all the USFK commanders, I think Thurman is the most warrior-like commander,” said a source who was in the military when Thurman was commander. “He understands South Korea very well, and the importance of the allies.”
During an interview with Newsweek magazine in December, Thurman said that the need for a US ambassador was “very critical” to US forces in South Korea, describing the ambassador as the first person he would call in the event of an emergency.
The speculation over Thurman’s ambassadorship has emerged since the retired US Army general served as a member of US Vice President Mike Pence’s delegation to the opening ceremony of the PyeongChang Winter Olympics in early February.
Debate over the Trump administration’s “bloody nose” strategy had roiled both Seoul and Washington. Inside the USFK, speculation was rampant that Washington was serious about conducting a limited military strike on North Korea.
South Korea’s government has opposed the idea of bringing another catastrophic war to the Korean Peninsula. Security analysts in Washington echoed the concern that there would be no guarantee of eliminating the entire nuclear arsenal in the North without escalation into a major war.
Among those critics were former George W. Bush administration official Victor Cha, Washington’s original choice for the next US ambassador in Seoul until the Trump administration dropped his nomination due to their differences on “policy views.”
By Yeo Jun-suk(
jasonyeo@heraldcorp.com)