Afghanistan Conflict Monitor

South Korea Clears Afghan Troop Deployment

Summer Deployment Approved for Afghanistan, Joong Ang Daily, 25 February 2010

EXCERPT: "The National Assembly yesterday approved a plan to dispatch Korean troops to Afghanistan on a mission to protect civilians working on recovery projects in the war-torn nation. Some 350 troops will be sent to Parwan Province this summer with a mandate of a two and a half years. The deployment marks a return to Afghanistan for Korean troops. Medical and engineering units were first dispatched to the country in 2002 but were pulled out completely in 2007 after the Taliban killed two Korean church workers from a group it had taken hostage and warned of 'bad consequences' if Korean forces remained in Afghanistan. The renewed deployment plan was passed yesterday by conservative lawmakers largely led by the Grand National Party. The Democrats walked out of the voting session to protest the redeployment, but did not physically block passage of the bill. A total of 163 lawmakers attended the session, and 148 voted for the plan. Five voted against it, while 10 abstained. The Ministry of National Defense said it is planning to complete the selection of soldiers by the middle of next month."

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Related articles:
Assembly passes bill to send Afghan troops, Korea Herald, 25 February 2010
Korean facilities go up at military base in Afghanistan, The Chosun Ilbo, 25 February 2010

Related posts:
South Korea to send 360 troops, police, 9 December 2009
Seoul to step up support in Afghanistan, 6 May 2009
Seoul to increase aid, training, 17 April 2009
Korea, Japan to join hands to aid Afghanistan, 8 January 2009

South Korea to Send 360 Troops, Police

South Korea to Send 360 Troops, Police to Afghanistan, The Korea Times, 8 December 2009

EXCERPT: "The Cabinet approved a plan Tuesday to deploy 320 troops to Afghanistan to protect 100 civilian reconstruction workers. In addition, 40 police officers will be sent to help train the Afghan police. A motion for the deployment from July 2010 to December 2012 will be submitted to the National Assembly for approval later this week, the Ministry of National Defense said. The motion will put the official number of troops up to 350, the ministry said in a news release. The security in Parwan Province, where the Korean contingent will be stationed, is relatively good, said Lt. Gen. Jang Kwang-il, deputy defense minister for policy. During the Cabinet meeting, President Lee Myung-bak dismissed the public concern about Korean troops' safety in the terrorism-ridden Central Asian nation. As for the decision on a two and a half year deployment, Jang said that the longer troop deployment will help the Korean provincial reconstruction team (PRT) provide stable and sustainable civil operations."

Read the full story.

Related articles:
Taliban warns ROK against sending troops to Afghanistan, China View, 9 December 2009
Safety of troops in Afghanistan must be top priority - Editorial, The Chosun Ilbo, 9 December 2009
South Korea finalizes plan for troop deployment to Afghanistan, Yonhap News, 8 December 2009
South Koreans protest Afghan troop dispatch, The Associated Press, 14 November 2009

Related posts:
South Korea plans Afghan deployment, 30 October 2009
Seoul to increase aid, training, 17 April 2009
Korea, Japan to join hands to aid Afghanistan, 8 January 2009
Afghanistan expects bigger Korean role, 5 May 2008

South Korea Plans Afghan Deployment

'South Korea Plans Afghan Deployment', BBC News, 30 October 2009

EXCERPT: "South Korea has announced it will send troops and police to Afghanistan to protect an expanded civilian reconstruction team. The troops would not take part in combat operations, officials said. The plan must be approved by parliament, where the ruling Grand National Party has a majority. The announcement comes two years after South Korea pulled out 200 military engineers and medics in 2007 after two South Korean missionaries were killed. The two missionaries were part of a group of 23 that were kidnapped by Taliban forces. South Korean foreign ministry spokesman Moon Tae-young said the South Korean provincial reconstruction team (PRT) was being expanded at the request of the Afghan government. Local media reports said the government was considering expanding the PRT from the current 25 aid workers to 130."

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See also:
'Afghan plan under wraps until after fact-finding trip', Joong Ang Daily, 30 October 2009
'South Korea to send troops to Afghanistan to protect aid workers', Yonhap News, 30 October 2009
'South Korean FM calls on parliament to support for Afghan aid package', China View, 29 October 2009

Related posts:
'Seoul to step up support in Afghanistan', 6 May 2009
'Seoul to increase aid, training', 17 April 2009
'Afghanistan expects bigger Korean role', 5 May 2008
'"No redeployment of Korean troops to Afghanistan"', 10 April 2008

Seoul To Step Up Support In Afghanistan

'Seoul To Step Up Support In Afghanistan', The Korea Herald, 6 May 2009

EXCERPT: "South Korea yesterday decided to increase financial and reconstruction support to the U.S.-led war in Afghanistan, the Foreign Ministry said. Seoul will be committing some $74 million by 2011, up from the $30 million originally pledged, the ministry said. The increased costs - including an additional $19 million the government approved yesterday - will mostly be used to send more equipment and civilians to help rebuild the war-ravaged country, officials said. There is currently a 25-member team of civilians, mostly in medical services, in Afghanistan. The government plans to increase the number to 85, and also diversify their duties to include job training and Taekwondo classes. 'We also plan to open more hospitals and job training facilities to accommodate the increased number of civilian workers, who will embark on their duties starting in January next year,' a ministry official said."

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See also:
'Korean troop deployment to Afghanistan mulled', The Dong-a Ilbo, 5 May 2009
'Washington asks Seoul for money for Afghanistan', Joong Ang Daily, 5 May 2009
'US asks South Korea to decide on deployment of troops in Afghanistan', The Hankyoreh, 3 May 2009

Related posts:
'Seoul to increase aid, training', 17 April 2009
'Korea, Japan to join hands to aid Afghanistan', 8 January 2009
'Afghanistan expects bigger Korean role', 5 May 2008
'"No redeployment of Korean troops to Afghanistan"', 10 April 2008

Seoul To Increase Aid, Training

'Seoul To Help Pakistan, Afghanistan', The Korea Herald, 17 April 2009

EXCERPT: "Korea yesterday promised to play an active role in international efforts to stabilize Pakistan and Afghanistan. U.S. special envoy to Afghanistan and Pakistan Richard Holbrooke met President Lee Myung-bak, Foreign Minister Yu Myung-hwan and presidential foreign affairs and security aide Kim Sung-hwan. For Afghanistan, Korea is considering increasing the number of its aid workers and dispatching police officers and firefighters to train Afghans. It also plans non-military assistance, including building hospitals and schools and providing medical support. Currently, 24 Korean medical and job training experts take part in the U.S. Provincial Reconstruction Team in Bagram, north of Kabul. Seoul withdrew its 210 medical and engineering troops from Afghanistan at the end of 2007."

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See also:
'Seoul seeks bigger role in Afghanistan', UPI Asia, 17 April 2009
'S. Korea to provide practical aid to war-torn Afghanistan', The Korea Times, 16 April 2009

Related posts:
'Lack of policemen willing to work in Afghanistan', 4 March 2009
'Korea, Japan to join hands to aid Afghanistan', 8 January 2009
'Afghanistan's future threatened by poor police', 10 June 2008
'Afghanistan expects bigger Korean role', 5 May 2008

Korea, Japan To Join Hands To Aid Afghanistan

'Korea, Japan To Join Hands To Aid Afghanistan', Donga News, 8 January 2009

EXCERPT: "President Lee Myung-bak and Japanese Prime Minister Taro Aso will agree to launch joint projects to help rebuild Afghanistan in their bilateral summit slated for Monday in Seoul, the Japanese daily Nihon Keizai Shimbun reported yesterday. Both sides will reportedly carry out joint projects in education and medical care, such as the construction of schools and hospitals in the war-torn country, through a partnership between the Korea International Cooperation Agency and the Japan International Cooperation Agency. It is unprecedented for the two neighbors to jointly provide foreign aid. Their joint reconstruction efforts are seen as a gesture of showing their support for the incoming Obama administration in the United States, which has emphasized peace and stability in Afghanistan"

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Related posts:
'Japan lower house votes to extend Afghan mission', 21 October 2008
'Japanese government drops plan to send troops', 18 July 2008
'Afghanistan expects bigger Korean role', 5 May 2008
'"No redeployment of Korean troops to Afghanistan"', 10 April 2008

Taliban Deny Drug Links With Detainees In Korea

'Taliban Deny Drug Links With Detainees In Korea', The Korea Times, 7 July 2008

EXCERPT: "Taliban militants in Afghanistan have denied they are involved in smuggling chemicals from Korea to Afghanistan for use in making heroin. Korean police Friday [4 July 2008] claimed they had arrested two Afghans and some South Asian citizens and seized around 12 tons of acetic anhydride from their possession during a raid. The Afghan citizens, police claimed, have admitted links to the Taliban in Afghanistan and said the chemicals were being smuggled to that country for use in heroin. However, a Taliban spokesman, approached by The Korea Times for comment, vehemently denied the charge, saying they are not involved in the drug trade. Zabeehullah Mujahid said their government, under their fugitive leader Mullah Omar, had almost eradicated poppies in Afghanistan and even their staunchest opponents had admitted that. 'Ours is an Islamic movement and our religion does not allow drugs business,' he said."

To continue reading the article, click here.

Related post:
'South Korean police bust "Taliban-linked" drug ring', 4 July 2008

South Korean Police Bust 'Taliban-linked' Drug Ring

'South Korean Police Bust "Taliban-linked" Drug Ring', Agence France Presse, 3 July 2008

EXCERPT: "South Korean police said Friday they have arrested members of a major drug-trafficking ring with suspected links to Afghanistan's Taliban insurgents. 'Police have rounded up a drug-trafficking ring involving Afghans and Pakistanis who are suspected of being linked with the Taliban,' a National Police Agency spokesman told AFP. 'They are suspected to trying to smuggle raw materials for heroin production into Afghanistan,' he said. Police said two Afghans, three Pakistanis and four Koreans tried to use South Korea as a shipping point for several tons of acetic anhydride destined for southern Afghanistan. The chemical is heated with morphine, extracted from opium, to produce heroin."

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Related posts:
'UNODC 2008 World Drug Report: Opium trade soars in Afghanistan', 26 June 2008
'Taliban's "$100 million opium takings"', 24 June 2008
'Massive drug bust made in Afghanistan', 11 June 2008
'Afghanistan expects bigger Korean role', 5 May 2008

Afghanistan Expects Bigger Korean Role

'Afghanistan Expects Bigger Korean Role', Online News Pakistan, 5 May 2008

EXCERPT: "The Afghanistan ambassador expressed appreciation for Korea’s assistance in reconstruction projects in his country, hoping to see a bigger role for Korea in Afghanistan. 'We believe Korea can play a bigger role in promoting peace, stability and reconstruction of Afghanistan. And it’s a suitable time for Korea as an economic power which traveled a long distance in a short period of time with good development plans,' Ambassador Mohammad Karim Rahimi said in an interview with The Korea Times. The two countries established diplomatic ties in 1973. They severed formal relations in 1978, but resumed them in 2002. Since then, Korea has been more of a supporter and donor than a trade partner or investor to the war-torn nation. Korea has made financial pledges for Afghan reconstruction projects through international channels where the basic framework of rehabilitation was discussed. Korean troops were deployed in 2002 as part of the International Security Assistance Force under the command of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), and stayed until last December. Korea decided not to renew the deployment."

To continue reading the article, click here.

See also:
'Taliban threatens to attack Korean police if deployed to Afghanistan', The Korea Times, 5 May 2008

Related posts:
'South Korea to send police to Afghanistan', 23 April 2008
'"No redeployment of Korean troops to Afghanistan"', 10 April 2008
'Korean troop withdrawal to be completed on December 14', 11 December 2007
'South Korea to withdraw troops from Afghanistan', 5 November 2007

US Apache Helicopters In Korea May Be Deployed In Afghanistan

'US Apache Helicopters In Korea May Be Deployed In Afghanistan', The Korea Times, 30 April 2008

EXCERPT: "The United States is considering pulling a battalion of Apache attack helicopters out of the Korean Peninsula to deploy it to Afghanistan on an anti-terror mission, a senior diplomat said Wednesday [30 April 2008]. The plan could create a possible security vacuum in South Korea as the high-tech U.S. attack helicopters are key assets of U.S. forces in Korea (USFK) against North Korea. It also runs counter to pledges made by U.S. President George W. Bush during a summit with President Lee Myung-bak last month that the United States will halt the agreed reduction of troops and weapons systems to help strengthen the combined defense posture on the peninsula. In a meeting with Korean journalists in Japan following the summit, President Lee expressed thanks to the U.S. government for keeping the current 28,500 U.S. troops, along with F-16 fighters and Apache helicopters. The USFK rejected requests by Korean journalists to confirm the Apache pullout plan, only saying the U.S. Department of Defense would issue a statement on the measure"

To continue reading the article, click here.

See also:
'US may send troops in South Korea to Afghanistan', Yonhap News, 30 April 2008

Related posts:
'South Korea to send police to Afghanistan', 23 April 2008
'"No redeployment of Korean troops to Afghanistan"', 10 April 2008
'Afghan medium-lift: Searching for available NATO military helicopters', 17 March 2008
'Helicopter shortage hurting Afghan mission', 27 November 2007