Landslide Vote! S. Korea Parliament Votes To Send 700 Military/Medics To Help USA In Iraq (Breaking)

Chosun Ilbo Daily News-Seoul (English Version) ^ | 2 April 2003 | Chosun Ilbo Daily News (English Version)

[AmericanInTokyo]

S. Korean Assembly Votes to Send Troops to Iraq

by Hong Seok-joon (udo@chosun.com)

The National Assembly today passed the bill to dispatch troops to Iraq, with 179 legislators voting in favor, 68 against and 9 abstentions. In an earlier vote, the amended dispatch bill, to send only a medical support group, was rejected with 44 in favor, 198 against and 14 abstentions.

The bill clears the way for the Ministry of National Defense to send 600 military engineers and about 100 medics to Iraq in May. The ministry is planning to recruit dispatch troops by the end of this week and to conduct one month of training.

"Helping the United States and ensuring close Korea-United States ties is a much better than seeing the relationship deteriorate and trying to justifying it by a failure to deal with North Korea’s nuclear issue," President Roh said in a speech earlier today to the National Assembly.

Ahead of the vote, Millennium Democratic Party members Kim Keun-Tae, Jong Bum-goo and Kim Seong-Ho, Grand National Party (GNP) members Suh Sang Suhp, and People’s Party for Reform’s Kim Won Wung opposed the dispatch, saying the war on Iraq in an invasion without any justification.

The GNP’s Park Se-Hwan spoke in favor of the bill, saying, "dispatching the troops is the cost of maintaining Korea-United States relations."

[NoCalEyes]

In MAY ? ?

That's like waiting for my wife to finish washing the dishes and then ask her if she needs any help !! ;-)

[homeschool mama]

LOL!

[ken5050]

They'll be used in the interrogation of Iraqi prisoners....justwait till the fedayeen start getting kimchee to eat 3x a day....

[FreeTheHostages]

Nope, I'm not saying thanks.

These guys are still spitting in our eyes -- kowtowing to the North Koreans and emboldening the North Koreans, and then blaming us for not stopping the fire they helped to set.

What the South Korean government has done in North Korean policy is shameful, and I know many of the older South Koreans agree. South Korea should continue to feel our cold shoulder until they elect leaders who know who their friends are.

[Salvation]

"Either you are with us, or you are with the terrorists."
~~George W. Bush

[AmericanInTokyo]

i wish I could have that much kimchee. you name it. oi kimchee, mak kimchee, pogi kimchee, kaktoogi. its delicious! (I would just withold water from them after eating copious amounts of it).

[Salvation]

As posted by FoxNews.com

South Korea Approves Dispatch of Non-Combat Troops to Iraq

Wednesday, April 02, 2003

SEOUL, South Korea  — South Korean lawmakers on Wednesday authorized the dispatch of non-combat troops to support the U.S.-led war on Iraq.

The decision by the National Assembly came hours after President Roh Moo-hyun said the deployment would strengthen the U.S.-South Korean alliance, thereby helping to peacefully resolve the nuclear standoff with North Korea.

The one-house National Assembly voted amid anti-war sentiment in South Korea and concerns that the United States might eventually attack North Korea.

Outside parliament, hundreds of anti-war activists waved "Stop the War" signs as they kicked, punched and hurled water bottles at riot police.

Police beat them back with plastic shields. At least two demonstrators were injured, blood streaming down their faces.

Roh has struggled to muster parliamentary support for the deployment of 600 South Korean military engineers and 100 medics in the Gulf, as the parliament wavered and delayed voting on the bill twice last week.

Speaking to parliament, Roh told lawmakers that the deployment of South Korean troops would strengthen Seoul's alliance with Washington.

"The fate of the country and the people depends on my decision," he said. "I came to the conclusion that helping the United States in difficult times and maintaining friendly U.S.-South Korean relations will help a lot in peacefully resolving the North Korean nuclear issue."

Washington has accused North Korea of developing nuclear weapons and the North has accused the United States of planning to invade. U.S. officials say they want a peaceful solution to the nuclear standoff, but have not ruled out a military option.

Roh said there would not be a war on the Korean Peninsula if South Koreans don't want it.

"The United States will not deal with the North's nuclear issue unilaterally," Roh said.

About 37,000 U.S. soldiers are stationed in South Korea.

[gaijin]

Mr. Roh should rest assured that the US will mediate between the Iraqi locals and South Korean troops....

[Grampa Dave]

This is a big turn around from a few months ago.

I guess that they didn't like hearing from Americans $crew you, no more Korean cars/suvs, and we will pull our troops out and let the NK's and Japanese decide your fate.

[cake_crumb]

"Helping the United States and ensuring close Korea-United States ties is a much better than seeing the relationship deteriorate and trying to justifying it by a failure to deal with North Korea’s nuclear issue," President Roh said in a speech earlier today to the National Assembly."

It was the UN IAEA's head inspector Hans Blix who failed to deal with North Korea's nuclear issue, during the Clintonista years. However, I find the apparent pragmatism of President Roh's comment to be a hopeful sign.

President Bush hasn't forgotten DPRNK's possible nukes.

Right around his inauguration, I had heard some not very complimentary assessments about Roh...has he been misjudged, perhaps?

[Enemy Of The State]

Maybe he is in the same cave as Bin laden

[strela]

"Use up the Irish. Arrows cost money - the dead cost nothing."

[anymouse]

Kim Jong il call your broker, your stock is falling fast.

[Gamecock]

OK. So they aren't Combat Troops

No, but guess where you find the engineers? Often they are in front of the warfighters, clearing minefields, building bridges for armour, etc. 800 engineers is quite a boost to any Army.

[Stultis]

There must be some mistake, or a fabrication simliar to the reports of French officials desperately attempting to stem popular anti-Americanism in their country. Le Partie Democratique has assured us that international resentment against America would only grow as the war in Iraq continued!

[oldironsides]

Oh Goody, now the PX facility in the area will be stripped
by the Koreans. We had the ROK forces in Vietnam and they bought every friggen thing off the shelf and sent it back to Korea. They even bought hard to find female products. They left the US military in a real bind. Let us hope they have these people under some sort of control this time.

[twigs]

I think the way we handled Turkey probably made some on-the-fence countries see that there are consequences to their actions, or lack thereof, and we do not see aid from us as a right of theirs. Don't we have a wonderful president?

[SarahW]

South Korea is a wonderful place, lots of talent and industry and love of freedom.

If you want to see for yourself how dreadful "Western Imperialist Values" are,

Check out the official North Korean website (which is nuts) and compare to, say, the SK Hauzen appliances website, especially this "drama"

http://www.hauzen.com/showroom/drama.asp

I really want a Hauzen washing machine!

They have a little flash "drama" on the site. Sun, love, laughing children, loving husband, the symphony, great appliances....

compare to:


http://www.korea-dpr.com to enter official NK site (It's NUTS!)

http://www.korea-dpr.com/KFA_hymn.mp3 Wacko anthem - my favorite part of the website (A cross between Dies Ires/Totentanz and a mouthwash commercial!)

http://www.korea-dpr.com/fiparam.asx - Video of the entire
"whistle" fleet of 15 cars (named the whistle, because they blow)
shown traversing (on what must be the only strip of NK highway over two miles) the bleak NK landscape. Check out the factory worker, who talks as though his pet collie is held at gunpoint offscreen, and the kuxurious car radio, which picks up a *single* factory preset station.

If I had to listen to that music everyday, I'd kill myself.

[AmericanInTokyo]

You fail to realize one key point.

While the current South Korean government, the Millenium Democratic Party, controls the Executive, the opposition, conservative Grand National Party, controls the Legislative. It is primarily a solid line of these votes, coupled with defecting MDP votes, that got this through as a landslide.

Get your facts straight and drop you anti-S. Korean bias.

You are pretty much a lone voice of dissent here, IMHO.