The establishment of a military strategic command...Combined Army, Navy and Air Force Command in Response to North Korea's Nuclear Weapons

The Ministry of National Defense said today that it held a strategic command creation ceremony at the parade field of the Capital Defense Command presided over by Minister Kim Yong-hyun, with Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Kim Myung-soo, Chief of Staff of the Army, Navy, and Air Force, and the commander of the U.S. Forces Korea.

Tomorrow, at the inaugural ceremony ahead of the official launch of Armed Forces Day, Minister Kim gave meaning to the Korean military, saying in a congratulatory speech that it is the strong will of the Korean military to actively realize peace by force.

The Strategic Command is a unit whose main mission is to suppress and respond to North Korea's nuclear and weapons of mass destruction (WMD), and will integrate strategic assets of the land, sea, and air forces, including prefectural ballistic missiles, stealth fighter jets, and 3,000-ton submarines.

In addition, it is a counterpart of the U.S. Strategic Command, which controls intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) and submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBMs), and will discuss the development of Korea-U.S. nuclear and conventional integration (CNI) with the U.S. side and lead related drills.

Air Force Lt. Gen. Jin Young-seung, who became the first strategic commander, stressed that he will lead the development of strategic capabilities against the North Korean nuclear and WMD threats, led by the best nuclear strategy and operation experts in the South Korean military.