Guest Columnist. ROK Military Academy Class of '80The State Affairs Planning Committee was launched on June 16th to serve as the transition team for the Lee Jae-myung administration. It was comprised of seven divisions (Planning, Economy 1-2, Social Affairs 1-2, Political Administration, and Foreign Affairs & National Security). Seventy days after its launch, on August 13th, it held a public reporting session. Under the national vision of 'A Nation Where the People are Sovereign, a Happy Republic of Korea Together,' the committee announced five major state objectives (Politics Uniting the People, an Innovation Economy Leading the World, Balanced Growth for All, a Society Built on Solid Fundamentals, and Foreign Affairs & National Security Centered on National Interest) and 123 national tasks.

1. What has the State Affairs Planning Committee done so far?

In his report, Hong Hyun-ik, Chairman of the Foreign Affairs and National Security Division, expressed his commitment to pursuing national interest-centered foreign affairs and national security tasks, including the advancement of the ROK-US alliance and diversification of diplomacy, the transfer of wartime operational control (OPCON), the abolition of the military counterintelligence command to prevent political intervention by the military, and transforming the 'Korean Peninsula risk' into a 'Korean Peninsula premium.'

It misinterprets North Korea's nuclear weapons as a result of 'adversarial relations.' North Korea's nuclear program is a means for the Kim Jong-un regime to maintain its power, and thus it cannot be resolved simply through dialogue. Instead, it requires a comprehensive approach involving strong international sanctions and overwhelming military deterrence. The committee is making a fundamental error by attempting to resolve this through 'improving relations.'

Furthermore, under the ambiguous concept of 'pragmatic diplomacy,' the committee failed to take a clear stance in the US-China competition, signaling a warning for the future of the ROK-US alliance. 'Public participation in North Korea policy' undermines security expertise and has the potential to cause internal conflict. There was no specific plan presented for 'securing independent deterrence' or 'early transfer of wartime operational control.' While advocating for 'foreign affairs and national security centered on national interest,' the Foreign Affairs and National Security Division has filled its agenda with tasks that judge security by political standards, weaken the ROK-US combined defense posture, and only fuel conflict within the ROK-US alliance.

The military-related matters the State Affairs Planning Committee has pursued so far include: ▲The transfer of OPCON, which attempts to turn military operational authority into a diplomatic card; ▲The disbandment of the counterintelligence command, which could dismantle the military's internal information and security networks; ▲The alteration of the martial law control structure, which seeks to politically reorganize the national command system in case of emergency; ▲The transfer of operational control of the Marine Corps 1st and 2nd Divisions from the Army to the Marine Corps, which could destabilize the balance and operational 합동성 of military organization; and ▲The intervention in military strategy under the guise of technology with the involvement of AI and advanced technologies in defense. All of these actions have artificially tampered with the military's core lifeline.

2. Who granted the State Affairs Planning Committee and its Foreign Affairs and National Security Division unchecked authority?

While it is claimed that experts participated in deriving the five foreign affairs and national security tasks, it is completely unbelievable. These tasks were driven by political intentions and resulted in a pathetic dismemberment that destroys the pure function of the military. In the eyes of the public, the State Affairs Planning Committee was not planning state affairs but was a political architect for prolonged rule, a dangerous intervenor aiming to destroy the security domain. If they proceed with these five tasks like an occupying force wearing armbands, without any constraints, the military risks losing its operational efficiency and internal discipline as an ally, and falling subservient to politics.

Although a white paper will be published to satisfy the public's right to know, specific information deemed likely to harm critical national interests such as national security, defense, and foreign affairs will not be disclosed under the pretext of confidentiality. If critical issues altering the military's functions and command structure are discussed and decided based on political calculations, without sufficient internal military review, national security will suffer fatal collateral damage. Security organizations must come forward to expose these acts of security destruction and call for the 폐기 of the tasks they have created.

3. The very act of a small minority in the Foreign Affairs and National Security Division planning the military is an act of security destruction.

Military policy and strategy require field experience and expertise as essential conditions. For a division composed of five experts to make decisions that have a decisive impact on overall security is highly likely to infringe upon the military's neutrality and professionalism. The military is an organization that protects the lives of the people and the existence of the nation. To place the military on a political experiment table and reshape it according to political and strategic advantages is a state affairs manipulation.

The State Affairs Planning Committee's attempt to plan the military from a strategic, rather than a state affairs, perspective appears to be a state funeral, leading to national ruin, rather than state planning. If national security is designed on a desk and security policies are decided to suit the whims of those in power, it will incite the wrath of veterans and the public. The security tasks derived and announced by the five members of the Foreign Affairs and National Security Division must be nullified. The nuclear threat from North Korea must be set as the top priority, and security must be solidified through strengthened deterrence centered on a strong ROK-US-Japan alliance and cooperation, along with international collaboration.

4. Do not plan the military; plan state affairs for the people and the nation.

 Military policy gains public and veteran consensus and support when it prioritizes 'national security' over 'political calculations.' The attempt to plan the military, while the current administration remains fixed and perceived as pro-China and pro-North Korea, without a 180-degree shift in stance, must be recognized as a 'state funeral' that ruins the nation, not 'state affairs.'

Genuine state affairs planning for the people and national interest is the first step for the people and the nation. Instead of a formal and showy public reporting session, all materials should be disclosed before publishing the white paper, and the 123 national tasks derived by each division should undergo a public hearing to verify their effectiveness.