SEOUL – South Korean Defense Minister Shin Won-sik called on special operations troops Wednesday to equip themselves with capabilities to “swiftly eliminate” the North Korean leadership if it starts a war against the South, Yonhap News Agency reported.

Shin made the call at the Army Special Warfare Command in Icheon, 56 km southeast of Seoul, as South Korea has been conducting the Freedom Shield joint military exercise with the US since last week to boost deterrence against the North’s threats.

“If Kim Jong-un starts a war, as a key unit of Korea Massive Punishment and Retaliation (KMPR), you must become the world’s strongest special operations unit to swiftly eliminate the enemy leadership,” Shin said, according to his office.

KMPR refers to an operational plan to incapacitate the North’s leadership in a major conflict.

It is a pillar of the military’s “three-axis” deterrence system against North Korea, which also includes the Kill Chain pre-emptive strike platform and the Korea Air and Missile Defense system.

South Korean and US special operations troops have been staging combined strike drills to hone combat capabilities since last Friday in connection with Freedom Shield, according to the Ministry.

The special operations exercise is aimed at strengthening operational capabilities in infiltrating key enemy command facilities and paralyzing their operations.

He called on troops Wednesday to master operational systems to neutralize North Korean nuclear and missile networks as he visited a key command bunker.

Shin made the call at Command Post TANGO (Theater Air Naval Ground Operations) in Seongnam, just south of Seoul, on the second to last day of the Freedom Shield exercise.

“Through this exercise, (we) must master operational systems that neutralize the North’s nuclear and missile network early on,” Shin was quoted by his office as saying. “(We) must also strengthen operational capabilities to the next level to overwhelm the enemy in all domains.”

The bunker complex serves as the primary command and control center of South Korean and US forces in the event of an armed conflict. It is known to be strong enough to survive a tactical nuclear attack. — Yonhap