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(LEAD) New JCS chief warns of 'unsparing' reprisal for N.K. provocations

All News 18:56 July 05, 2022

(ATTN: UPDATES with details throughout; ADDS photo)
By Kang Yoon-seung

SEOUL, July 5 (Yonhap) -- Army Gen. Kim Seung-kyum took office as the new head of South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS) on Tuesday, warning North Korea's provocations will be met with "unsparing retaliation."

Kim's inauguration came amid growing concerns about the possibility of the recalcitrant regime conducting what would be its seventh nuclear test or other provocative acts.

"If North Korea provokes, our military will definitely have it pay a hefty price for that through unsparing retaliation," he said in his inauguration speech. "(We) will inscribe even onto its bones (the message) that there's nothing to gain from provocations."

The warning came in tune with the conservative Yoon Suk-yeol administration's hardline stance on the North's provocative streak, marked by a series of missile launches earlier this year.

"The North waged the Korean War in 1950 and has since staged military provocations incessantly, and at present, in particular, it is bolstering its nuclear and missile capabilities that are seriously threatening peace in South Korea and the world," he said.

President Yoon Suk-yeol (L) ties a tassel to a sword of Gen. Kim Seung-kyum, the new head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), in Seoul on July 5, 2022, to mark Kim's inauguration, in this pool photo. The traditional Korean sword Sam Jeong Geom, or the Three Spirits Sword, represents the three spirits of defending the country, unification and prosperity, as well as the Army, Navy and Air Force. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

President Yoon Suk-yeol (L) ties a tassel to a sword of Gen. Kim Seung-kyum, the new head of the Joint Chiefs of Staff (JCS), in Seoul on July 5, 2022, to mark Kim's inauguration, in this pool photo. The traditional Korean sword Sam Jeong Geom, or the Three Spirits Sword, represents the three spirits of defending the country, unification and prosperity, as well as the Army, Navy and Air Force. (Pool photo) (Yonhap)

Kim also underscored around-the-clock defense readiness, citing an old saying that means troops should rest their heads on their spears at night to stay ready for the enemy.

"Intrinsic to combat preparations are a combative mind-set and strong training," he said, hinting at his priority on strengthening military drills.

Outlining his policy priorities, the top uniformed officer stressed his resolve to strengthen capabilities to counter the North's nuclear and missile threats and achieve the "completeness" of peacetime and wartime operation schemes, including those with the United States.

On the issue of South Korea's push to regain wartime operational control from the U.S., Kim said he would pursue a conditions-based transfer in a "systematic and stable" manner.

Kim became the first general to take the JCS helm without a parliamentary confirmation hearing since 2006, when the legislative procedure was introduced. His hearing did not proceed amid partisan wrangling over parliamentary committee formations.

Kim, the former deputy chief of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command, was tapped for the JCS chair post in late May, as the Yoon Suk-yeol administration pushes to reinforce the alliance with the United States.

Kim succeeded Air Force Gen. Won In-choul, who had led the JCS since September 2020.

Commissioned as a second lieutenant in 1986, Kim has served in various key military posts, including the vice Army chief of staff and the head of the 3rd Corps. He is the first graduate of the Korea Military Academy to lead the JCS in nine years.

Army Gen. Kim Seung-kyum speaks to reporters in Seoul in this file photo taken May 27, 2022. (Yonhap)

Army Gen. Kim Seung-kyum speaks to reporters in Seoul in this file photo taken May 27, 2022. (Yonhap)

colin@yna.co.kr
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