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박 대통령 “강력한 한미연합방위체제 유지”

Oct. 1, 2013 - 17:11 By 송상호
박근혜 대통령은 1일 성남 서울공항에서 연린 건군 65주년 국군의 날 기념식 기념사에서 “우리는 북한이 핵을 내려놓고 북한 주민과 한반도평화를 위한 올바른 선택을 할 때까지 강력한 대북억지력을 구축해야만 한다”고 말했다.

“지금 우리를 둘러싼 한반도와 동북아의 안보환경은 매우 엄중하다. 북한은 핵개발을 고집하면서 점점 더 고도화시켜가고 있다”며 이같이 밝혔다.

1일 오전 성남공항에서 건군65주년 국군의날 기념식이 열렸다. 박근혜 대통령이 각 부대별로 열병을 하고 있다. 대통령 옆은 이동중 제병지휘관, 뒤는 김관진 국방장관. (정희조 기자/코리아헤럴드)

박 대통령은 또한 “저는 군대의 진정한 존재가치는 전쟁을 하는데 있는게 아니라 전쟁을 막는데 있다고 생각한다”고 덧붙였다.

특히 박 대통령은 “정부는 강력한 한미연합방위체제를 유지하면서 ‘킬 체인’(Kill Chain)과 한국형미사일방어체계(KAMD) 등 핵과 대량살상무기 대응능력을 조기에 확보, 북한 정권이 집착하는 핵과 미사일이 더 이상 쓸모없다는 것을 스스로 인식하도록 할 것”이라고 강조했다.

이번 행사는 지난 2003년 이후 10년 만에 최대규모로 개최되었고, 병력 1만1천여명 과 지상 장비 190여대, 항공기 120여대 등 최신 장비가 참가한 가운데 식전행사와 기념식, 분열 등의 순으로 진행됐다.

특히 이날 행사에서는 북한의 핵심 시설을 타격하는 탄도미사일 ‘현무-Ⅱ’(사거리 300㎞)와 장거리 순항미사일 ‘현무-Ⅲ’(사거리 1천㎞), 해안포 부대 타격용 ‘스파이크 미사일’(사거리 20여㎞) 등이 처음 공개됐다.

이날 기념식에는 방한중인 척 헤이글 미국 국방장관과 마틴 뎀시 미 합참의장도 참석했다.

2일에는 한미 양국장관이 한미연례안보협의회를 개최해 전시작전통제권 이양과 양국 안보 현안에 대해서 논의한다.




<관련 영문기사>

Park vows stronger N.K. deterrence


Seoul stages largest military parade in decade, shows off strategic ballistic, cruise missiles

By Song Sang-ho

President Park Geun-hye on Tuesday vowed to step up efforts for stronger deterrence until Pyongyang made the “right” choice for peninsular peace, as Seoul marked the 65th anniversary of the founding of its armed forces.

During Seoul’s largest military parade in a decade, Park said Seoul would strive to quickly acquire key assets, including a low-tier missile defense system, to counter threats from North Korea’s nuclear arms and other weapons of mass destruction.

“The current security environment surrounding the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia is very grave. The North has been gradually upgrading its nuclear capabilities,” Park said during the parade at Seoul Airport in Seongnam, Gyeonggi Province.

“I believe that the genuine value of the military lies not in waging war, but on deterring war. … I will make the North Korean regime recognize that the nuclear arms and missiles it has been constantly pursuing are no longer useful.”

For the military event, also attended by U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel and U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey, some 11,000 troops, 120 aircraft and 190 ground-based military weapons systems were mobilized.

For the first time, the military revealed the Hyunmu-II ballistic missile with a range of 300 km and the Hyunmu-III cruise missile with a range of 1,000 km, both of which are capable of striking key military targets in the North.

It also unveiled the Israeli-made Spike missile with a range of 20 km, which is capable of launching precision strikes on artillery pieces on the western coast of the communist state.

During the parade, Park pledged to quickly establish the “Kill Chain” system and the Korea Air and Missile Defense program.

The Kill Chain system is Seoul’s preemptive strike apparatus. Mobilizing all intelligence, reconnaissance and surveillance assets of the South Korea-U.S. combined forces, the system aims to launch strikes quickly after signs are detected of an imminent nuclear or missile provocation by Pyongyang.

The KAMD is a low-tier missile defense program to counter Pyongyang’s missile threats. Seoul has long argued that it is different from the U.S.-led global multilayered missile defense program in consideration of its relations with Beijing.

“With strong security that does not allow for any provocations, (we) can encourage North Korea to come out toward the path for genuine change, while maintaining peninsular peace,” said Park.

“The government will usher in a new era of people’s happiness and hope while laying the groundwork step by step for peninsular peace and reunification, based on robust security.”

Her remarks apparently reaffirmed that her government would step up its push for her signature “peninsular trust-building process,” through which she vowed to continue dialogue with the North to address bilateral issues while maintaining strong deterrence.

Meanwhile, U.S. JCS Chairman Dempsey visited the Seoul National Cemetery to pay respects to South Korean war dead earlier in the day.

The allies’ defense ministers and their top military officials are to meet on Wednesday for their annual Security Consultative Meeting, where Seoul’s request to reconsider the timing of the transfer of wartime operational control is expected to top the agenda.

During the SCM, the allies are also expected to finalize their “tailored” deterrence strategy against North Korea’s nuclear arms and other weapons of mass destruction.

(sshluck@heraldcorp.com)