Male cadets raise their fists in a gesture of solidarity during a graduation ceremony at the Armed Forces Nursing Academy in the central city of Daejeon on Feb. 24, 2016. It marks the first time male cadets have graduated from the nursing school. (Yonhap)
Condolences to the friends and families of these ROK soldiers killed in this helicopter crash. Judging by the below picture it looks like it crashed right outside the wall of the military base:
A South Korean military helicopter crashed in an eastern province on Monday, killing three of the four soldiers on board, officials said.
The helicopter went down in a farming field in the city of Chuncheon in the eastern province of Gangwon during a checkout flight, defense and army officials said.
The officials said that all four soldiers aboard the helicopter were initially rescued after the crash, but that three of them died while being treated in hospitals.
They said no casualties on the ground have been reported. The cause of the crash is under investigation. [Washington Post via a reader tip]
I never had the chance to see the K-2 cross a river before, but having this capability is needed in South Korea with its many deep rivers:
A South Korean K-2 “Black Panther” tank sports an unusual-looking piece of equipment in this YouTube video. The tank, crossing a 13 foot deep river during a military exercise, is using a so-called fording kit to allow it to drive across the river bottom.
Bridges are often destroyed in wartime, and the pace of operations may mean only a limited number of portable bridges may be available. The solution to a potentially deadly traffic bottleneck: unlike many military vehicles, tanks are usually waterproof and their tracks still work underwater-so why not drive them underwater? (………….)
Modern fording kits typically consist of a single smokestack-like pipe that connects to the tank commander’s hatch. This allows the tank commander to sit at the top, where he can keep an eye on the tank’s progress. The stack also serves as an escape hatch for the crew in case of emergencies. [Popular Mechanics]
I am sure the ROK military has thoroughly thought through and rehearsed their plans in response to whatever the next provocation North Korea has planned:
Tensions are running high near the inter-Korean border Friday afternoon as South Korea’s military resumed loudspeaker propaganda broadcasts toward North Korea in the demilitarized zone(DMZ).
To deal with possible North Korean attacks on South Korean speaker facilities, the South’s military has issued its highest level of vigilance at eleven areas at the forefront, where the psychological warfare facilities have been installed.
A defense official said Friday that the military will thoroughly carry out propaganda broadcast operations, and it will respond sternly and accordingly if the North’s military engages in artillery provocations against the loudspeakers or nearby areas.
In case the North attacks, the South’s military is said to be planning to retaliate with fire power that is three to four times stronger than the North’s. [KBS World Radio]
Could you just imagine the whinging in the US if a mandatory service requirement was mandated and conscripts were making less than $200 a month?:
Salaries for conscripted soldiers will go up 15 percent on-year in 2016, with sergeants earning 197,100 won a month, according to the government.
All able-bodied South Korean men must carry out compulsory military service for about two years in a country that faces North Korea across a heavily fortified border. (Korea Herald)
Instead of complaining about how much money the ROK government spent in 2014 to upgrade its defense capabilities maybe the Hankyoreh should instead complain about how the North Koreans are the ones necessitating defense upgrades in the first place:
Last year, South Korea was the world’s largest importer of weapons, a US government report shows, which is an inevitable result of South Korean President Park Geun-hye’s emphasis on providing a military deterrent to North Korea. This prompts the criticism that, ultimately, the only winners of this policy are the world’s arms manufacturers.
On Dec. 26, the New York Times reported that South Korea had signed arms contracts worth US$7.8 billion in 2014 – more than any other country – citing a report by the US Congressional Research Service (CRS).Around US$7 billion of the weapons purchased by South Korea, which include unmanned surveillance aircraft and transport helicopters, are of American manufacture, the newspaper reported.After South Korea, Iraq purchased US$7.3 billion worth of weapons to strengthen its military after the withdrawal of US forces. Brazil was ranked 3rd on the list, purchasing US$6.5 billion of weaponry, including aircraft made in Sweden. [Hankyoreh]
As South Korea begins to establish a more robust space program that will include multiple defense satellites, being able to monitor and defend against threats to those assets as well as providing missile warning is important:
Republic of Korea air force Lt. Col. Kim Jae Don works on a combined joint task force air battle management plan March 10, 2015, in the Republic of Korea Air and Space Operation Center during at Osan Air Base, Republic of Korea. On Wednesday, South Korean officials asked for American assistance in expanding its space-defense program. SHAWN NICKEL/U.S. AIR FORCE
South Korea wants help from the United States as it tries to develop its nascent space-defense program, Defense Ministry officials said Wednesday.
The nation’s space plans aren’t targeting a particular country or threat, ministry officials told Stars and Stripes. However, North Korea’s continuing research on long-range ballistic missiles represents a threat that theoretically could be defeated using space-based technology.
Seoul will be “building up the foundation to carry out space warfare by creating and conducting a high-level U.S.-South Korea defense space development [tabletop exercise] regularly,” according to a recent Defense Ministry statement.
The Defense Ministry and the Pentagon will also share information on space development, a ministry spokesman said Wednesday.
South Korea established its first Space Operations Center in July, when it also announced plans to build a national space surveillance system by 2030. Last week, defense officials said the new space center successfully tracked a falling Russian satellite, with assistance from the U.S. Strategic Command.
The pact with South Korea follows similar actions taken between the U.S. and Japan to bolster cooperation earlier this year. In April, Tokyo and Washington revised 1997 bilateral defense guidelines to include a section on space, calling for the nations to “share information to address emerging threats against space systems.” [Stars & Stripes]
I remember a few KATUSA soldiers over the years who lived the majority of their lives in the US, but still went and did their mandatory service to the ROK Army to keep their Korean citizenship. I always had a lot of respect for those who did this unlike some of the Korean males that try to get dual citizenship to get out of their mandatory service requirement:
Michael Cho and his mother.
In May 2011, Michael Cho’s phone rang while he waited for an elevator in his freshman dorm. His mother was calling to tell him his conscription letter had arrived — from the South Korean Department of Defense.
Cho, a Georgetown University student born in South Korea, was raised in Sydney, Australia. But South Korean Conscription Law requires males between 20 and 30 to serve for a minimum of 21 months to maintain citizenship.
So, in the fall, Cho went to South Korea, jumping right into the regimented, rigorous drills and daily life of a South Korean soldier.
After a grueling five-week boot camp, Cho’s commanders selected him to patrol the DMZ — a dangerous demilitarized zone (DMZ) between North Korea and South Korea. Every soldier routinely took shifts patrolling the border. [USA Today]
You can read the rest and see a video at the link.
