Summary:
- Noh may state position on Iraq as early as tomorrow - NSC meeting scheduled for the morning.
- Chosun, Dong-A, Joongang support troop dispatch. Hankyoreh opposes it.
- Noh says that domestic pressure on Iraq is worse than American pressure.
A decision on Iraq may come as early as tomorrow. With the UN Security Council passing a resolution on Iraq and President Noh scheduled to meet with President Bush during the APEC summit in Bangkok (opens Sunday), the Nohmeister is under pressure to make his position clear on whether or not South Korea will dispatch peacekeepers to Iraq. According to the Korea Times:
President Roh Moo-hyun yesterday said the government will “actively” seek a decision on whether to dispatch combat troops to Iraq at the request of the United States.
“There has only been low-profile discussion over the matter so far. Now we need to speed up efforts to wrap it up,” Roh said. His remarks came a day after the United Nations passed a resolution on Iraq, clearing a major hurdle for Seoul to commit to sending combat troops. According to sources, the Roh administration may announce its decision soon, even before the president leaves for Bangkok to attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Forum summit meeting Sunday.
“Regarding timing and other details of the troops dispatch, I will take the national interest and its significance in international politics into account,” he added, speaking at a meeting with a group of war veterans at Chong Wa Dae.
Roh said his administration will discuss the matter in earnest starting with the National Security Council meeting slated for today at the presidential office. Roh will chair the meeting.
Interestingly enough, Noh is on record as saying that domestic pressure to send troops to Iraq was even greater than that put on him by the Americans. According to this OhMyNews story, during a meeting with anti-war activists, the Nohmeister is reported to have complained of “conjectural media reports” concerning the dispatch of forces to Iraq, saying “the pressure I feel from within Korea is greater than that I feel from the Americans.” Noh also said that there has been no direct pressure from the US to send troops to Iraq, but “we cannot say there hasn’t been any indirect pressure.” It’s a long report, and I do not intend to expound upon it in its entirety, but the President did express his opinion that sending troops to Iraq would neither greatly benefit Korea economically nor seriously harm its interests - hey, if it’s six of one and a half dozen of the other… anyway, according to one of the activists who met with Noh, the Presidents chief concern was Korea becoming a target for terrorists.
In terms of media pressure, it does appear intense. In the editorial section of yesterday’s Chosun Ilbo (English edition), we find:
If the government and the ruling camp continue to use the confidence vote question to hold off on a decision about troops for Iraq with this utterly vague approach, then they might as well state now a clear position and take responsibility for the consequences. That would be the right thing to do.
The Joongang Ilbo put it this way:
The United Nations Security Council Thursday unanimously approved a revised resolution authorizing American-led multinational forces in Iraq. Now it is time for the government to decide whether to dispatch Korean troops to Iraq. According to polls, over 70 percent of the people said they would support sending troops if the UN resolution passed. As President Roh Moo-hyun is listening to the opinions of people in various fields, it is only a matter of time before the government makes a decision.
This has been debated for more than a month. Both sides have expressed their views sufficiently. As time passes, the debate tends to be emotionally charged. Prolonging debate on an issue on which opinion has been fully expressed will only lead to division and harm the national interest. If we decide not to dispatch troops, we have to give the United States time to seek an alternative solution. When Mr. Roh meets President George W. Bush Monday, he has to give him an answer.
We think sending troops is the inevitable choice. And we are of the opinion that it is better to do so as a 50-year ally of the United States. We should not cut down the meaning of the dispatch by making clumsy excuses or showing narrow-mindedness.
Singing in unison is the Dong-A Ilbo - today’s editorial (Korean edition, as the English edition is still awaiting translation) advises:
Because of the sensation caused by the confidence referendum issue, the domestic political situation is in turmoil, but one musn’t short-sightedly connect the dispatch of troops to Iraq with this domestic problem. The government must make a great decision, and rather than shirk its responsibility, it has to make its choice and then positively convince those citizens who oppose it.
Leave it up to the Hankyoreh, however, to play the role of dissident. In today’s abortion editorial, they conclude:
The discussion surrounding the dispatch of forces to Iraq has not changed after the passage of the UNSC resolution. In fact, now is the time to rethink basic questions. Why did the Bush Adminstration unilaterally invade Iraq? Why is the US going against the entire Islamic world by installing a pro-American regime in Iraq? For what reason are we risking the lives of our nation’s youth by placing them in a battlefield where they do not belong? Will the American experiment in Iraq be successful? If the hawks who drove the American invasion of Iraq likewise pursue regime change in North Korea, what will happen? What specific national interests interests can be advanced? The government, which is intimately connected with this problem, must be able to make a consistent and satisfactory decision. If it cannot, the government should not dispatch troops to Iraq.
The Hani was unimpressed with UNSC resolution - a product of American coercion, they say, that changes an army of occupation into a multinational UN force in name only. Hey, Germany, France, Russia, and even Pakistan said no to troops, so why can’t we? So asketh the Hani.
Obviously, there quite a bit of stuff out there, and you can expect a lot more once this morning’s NSC meeting concludes.
