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Military
Second Cheonan Report Expected Soon
Tuesday, August 24, 2010
Korea Navy
By John McGlynn
Tokyo - South Korea's defense ministry is reportedly set to release a book-length report, possibly as early as this week, on the results of its investigation into the sinking of a South Korean warship Cheonan, which resulted in the deaths of forty-six sailors.
A five-page report issued by the same ministry in May, which concluded that a North Korea torpedo sank the 1,200-ton Cheonan on March 26, has met with skepticism from both China and Russia. Additionally, opinion polls show 20%-30% of South Koreans doubt the report's conclusion.
The United States and South Korean governments hailed the May report as a "comprehensive" finding of North Korean responsibility by an "international team" of investigators consisting of experts representing the United States, Australia, United Kingdom, Canada, and Sweden, along with South Korea.
However, little was made public about the investigative team's forensic and scientific analytical methods and how the team worked together.
Also, the objectivity of the report has been called into question because evidence linking North Korea to the torpedo was found only days before the report was issued to meet a publication deadline pre-determined by South Korea's defense ministry, leaving little time for careful examination of the physical evidence.
Furthermore, the finding that North Korea sank the Cheonan was not endorsed by Sweden.
Except for Sweden, the other five participating nations were all antagonists of North Korea during the Korean War and are actively involved in planning for the possible outbreak of a new war on the Korean Peninsula.
According to the Wall Street Journal, South Korea's defense ministry promises a report of 250 to 270 pages, available in Korean and English.
North Korea has repeatedly asked Seoul to allow it to conduct its own investigation but has been rebuffed.
Inside and outside of South Korea there have been calls for an independent examination that is more representative of the international community, a suggestion resisted by South Korea and the United States, even though tensions between North and South Korea have escalated to the point of possible military action.
In contrast, Washington did eventually agree to a UN investigation of the May 31 Israeli attack in international waters on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish vessel that was en route to the blockaded Palestinian territory of Gaza to deliver humanitarian aid. In that attack, Israeli commandos shot dead nine Turkish relief workers.
The Obama administration has not offered any public rationale for its differing approaches to these issues.
John McGlynn is an independent political analyst based in Tokyo.
PanOrient News
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