Special Investigation Team Explains:
"Only South Korean Materials Were Targeted"
It has been reported that United States Forces Korea (USFK) officially lodged a protest with the South Korean government regarding the special investigation team's search and seizure at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province.
According to military sources on October 16, David Iverson, Deputy Commander of USFK and a U.S. Air Force Lieutenant General, sent a letter to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on October 3. In the letter, he stated, "I am sending this letter to express concerns regarding the search and seizure conducted by the special investigation team. I request an explanation as to why the Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) was not observed in this incident." Deputy Commander Iverson also serves as the U.S. chair of the SOFA Joint Committee.
Previously, the special investigation team probing the December 3 Martial Law Incident conducted a search and seizure on July 21 at the No. 1 Central Air Defense Control Center (MCRC) of the Republic of Korea Air Force Air Defense Command, located in the Korea Air and Space Operations Center (KAOC) building within Osan Air Base. This was to verify whether the Drone Operations Command had sent an official cooperation letter to the Air Defense Command in connection with suspicions surrounding the so-called Pyongyang drone operation from October to November of last year.
Initially, after the search and seizure, USFK did not issue a separate statement. Additionally, President Donald Trump commented on the search and seizure, but after hearing President Lee Jaemyung's explanation at the South Korea-U.S. summit in August, he stated, "I am convinced there was a misunderstanding." However, less than two months later, USFK took the unusual step of sending a protest letter regarding the search and seizure.
The MCRC in question is a system that detects, controls, and responds to all flying objects within the Korea Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) 24 hours a day using combined and joint assets of South Korea and the United States. The KAOC at Osan Air Base, where the MCRC is located, is jointly used by both countries and is divided into areas where South Korean and U.S. personnel work together and areas where each side works separately.
The special investigation team explained regarding the search and seizure, "The search and seizure at the MCRC only targeted materials collected by South Korean reconnaissance assets and managed by South Korean military personnel," adding, "It was carried out with the approval of the Air Defense Command Commander." However, USFK has raised the issue that, since the KAOC is a facility jointly used by both sides, the operation may have violated SOFA regulations.
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