UNC not to proceed with plan for security brigade after talks with Korea: defense minister

The United Nations Command (UNC) has decided against implementing its plan to form a security brigade that would merge its border security and armistice enforcement operations, following discussions with South Korea, stated Defense Minister Ahn Gyu-back on Friday. The news reports suggested that the UNC was contemplating the establishment of a new brigade tasked with safeguarding the Joint Security Area (JSA) in the border village of Panmunjom and enforcing the Armistice Agreement, which concluded the 1950-53 Korean War.

Presently, the UNC's security battalion stationed at Camp Bonifas in Paju, north of Seoul, is responsible for guarding the JSA, while the secretariat of the Military Armistice Commission (MAC) located at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, approximately 60 kilometers south of Seoul, manages border entry authorizations and probes into armistice breaches, among other tasks.

According to the purported UNC plan, these functions would be amalgamated into a single brigade, under the command of the MAC commander. South Korea had reportedly voiced its disapproval of the plan, as reported in the news. The UNC and South Korea engaged in talks about this matter, and apparently reached a consensus.