South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Choi Yoon-hee (L, front), accompanied by Thomas S. Vandal (R, front), head of the 2nd Infantry Division of U.S. Forces Korea, tours the division in the city of Dongducheon, north of Seoul, on April 20, 2015, in this photo released by the Joint Chiefs of Staff. (Yonhap)
Condolences to the family of this deceased USFK soldier:
A 2nd Infantry Division soldier died after being found unresponsive in his barracks at Camp Hovey, South Korea, 8th Army officials said Wednesday.
Sgt. 1st Class Stephen C. Perry, 35, was pronounced dead after being transported Wednesday to Saint Mary’s Hospital.
Perry, of New Orleans, was assigned to the 1st Brigade Special Troops Battalion, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division.
“We are keeping Stephen’s family in our thoughts and prayers during this difficult time,” said Col. Matthew Eichburg, commander of 1st ABCT. “Stephen was a passionate soldier and a valued member of the Iron Team.”
The death remains under investigation, 8th Army officials said. [Stars & Stripes]
A soldier from the 2nd Infantry Division of U.S. Forces Korea and a soldier from the 65th Division of the Korean Army compete in a “ssireum,” Korean wrestling, match at Camp Casey in the city of Dongducheon, north of Seoul, on April 17, 2015, as part of an athletic event aimed at promoting the South Korea-U.S. friendship. (Yonhap)
This sounds like another populist antic, by the Dongducheon Mayor because the city could have the land tomorrow if the Korean government agreed to accept it:
Angered by the U.S. military’s continuing possession of a long-vacated base, a city near the North Korean border is taking steps to “show its will,” from canceling friendship activities to forcing troops to go to municipal hall to register their cars.
Dongducheon, home to the 2nd Infantry’s Camps Casey and Hovey, notified the military Jan. 9 that it would withdraw its staffer handling private vehicle registrations for troops from Casey on Monday, forcing them to travel to city offices about a mile away.
“It was the quickest and easiest measure we could take under the SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) and Korean domestic law,” the chief of a city office handling U.S. Forces Korea affairs said.
Dongducheon also plans to halt tours of the city for incoming 2ID soldiers and will no longer invite U.S. troops to take part in its annual Lunar New Year’s Day ceremony next month, he said. The city is also considering halting other friendship events with 2ID.
At issue is when U.S. Forces Korea will return Camp Castle, which it said closed in 2010, to South Korean control. The city says negotiations on the return that have been going on for several years have been postponed.
USFK said in a statement it is ready now to turn over 38 acres about 1.8 miles from city hall.
“Camp Castle will be returned as soon as the (South Korean) government agrees to accept the return,” the statement said. The command would not elaborate on why the handover has apparently stalled and referred questions to South Korea.
South Korea’s Foreign Ministry said the two countries are currently discussing the handover of the base through Status of Forces Agreement channels including an environmental subcommittee, but the timing of the return has not been decided. The ministry did not provide further details.
Dongducheon had hoped to turn the vacant base into a university campus that city officials believe would bolster the local economy. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link, but with just about every USFK camp closeout and handover environmental clean up has been a big negotiating point. This is because the Korean government tries to get USFK to pay as much for the clean up as possible even though by the letter of the SOFA the camps can be turned over as is.
Here is an update of the development of the “Combined Division” that the 2nd Infantry Division is developing with the ROK Army:
About 30 South Korean officers, including a one-star general, became part of the 2nd Infantry Division’s headquarters staff Thursday as part of the formation of a combined division.
The integration is one of the first concrete steps the two militaries have taken toward the historic restructuring since the initiative was announced last September.
“U.S. and Korean soldiers will literally operate as one unit with one unified effort,” 2ID commander Maj. Gen. Thomas Vandal was quoted as saying in a 2ID statement. “Nowhere else has this been attempted to the extent that we are going to implement, and the fact that we are able to make this happen is momentous.”
The combined division will fall under the 8th Army and include 2ID forces and South Korea’s 16th Brigade. It will be led by the 2ID commander and a South Korean one-star general – initially Brig. Gen. Yin Sung-hwan — acting as deputy commander. Many of the South Korean officers joining the headquarters staff, composed of approximately 750 U.S. troops, will begin integration training next week, according to the statement.
Officials have said the combined division will improve the allies’ warfighting capabilities and create more opportunities for joint training. South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense previously said that during peacetime, troops from each country will live at separate bases and train together as needed. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link.
Though some units have had active training relationships with ROK Army counterparts in the past this is probably something that should have been done long ago that is finally coming to fruition to formalize and better integrate these relationships. Hopefully these headquarters staff ROK officers are not treated as glorified KATUSAs and instead are fully integrated as part of the team. It will be interesting to see how well this works out.
I wonder if the juicy bar owners are the ones pushing the mayor to make these complaints because they are the ones currently losing big money due to USFK’s decision to ban servicemembers from giving money to juicy girls:
The mayor of a city near the North Korean border is seeking $2.7 billion from the South Korean government, claiming the delayed relocation of American troops from Dongducheon is hurting the local economy and redevelopment plans.
City officials say Mayor Oh Se-chang told Defense Minister Han Min-koo that if Dongducheon — home to camps Casey and Hovey — doesn’t see some show of support from the government by the end of the year, the city will consider holding a large demonstration and a nonbinding referendum on whether U.S. troops should remain there.
Approximately 5,900 soldiers are assigned to the 2nd Infantry Division in Area I, which extends from just north and east of Seoul up to the Demilitarized Zone.
“If U.S. troops want to stay in Dongducheon, they should be of help to the local economy or all of them should go away,” a city official said, speaking on customary condition of anonymity. He said troops should be spending more money at off-post Korean-owned businesses instead of shopping solely at post exchanges or other on-base facilities. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link, but basically the mayor just wants to get paid off by the national government to keep quiet. Also of interest in the article is that a spokesman said that Camp Casey is now scheduled to be handed back over to the local government in the 2020 timeframe. I will believe that when I see it.
Here is an update I received from the 2nd Infantry Division Association on upcoming events for those interested:
Dear Veterans, Active Duty Soldiers, Family Members, and Friends of the
2nd Infantry Division:Here is an update on 2ID Association Activities.
1. National Reunions. The next three reunions will be held at:
– San Antonio, TX from September 22-26, 2015.
– Springfield, MO in September 2016.
– Washington, DC in the fall of 2017 to commemorate the 100th birthday
of the Warrior Division.2. New Association Officers.
– Aves Thompson (23rd Infantry, Korea-DMZ), President
– John Batty-Sylvan (23rd Infantry, Korea-DMZ), 1st Vice
President– Barry Napp, (17th Field Artillery, Korea-DMZ), 2nd Vice President
3. Active Division. The 2nd Infantry Division Artillery (DIVARTY) was
reactivated at Joint Base Lewis-McChord, Washington on September 25,
2014. DIVARTY assumed training and development responsibility for the
artillery battalions assigned to both 2nd Brigade-2ID and 3rd
Brigade-2ID. It also has responsibilities on the Korean Peninsula. Its
headquarters would be with some of the first called for combat missions
if the current Armistice ended and war returned between North and South
Korea (Source: News article in the JBLM Northwest Guardian newspaper).4. Merchandise. Show your pride in your service as a member of the
famous 2nd Infantry Division. The holidays
are coming up and you can now order something online for your favorite
Warrior at: http://2ida.org/merchandise/Second to None!
Membership/Public Relations Committee
The Second Indianhead Division Association, Inc.2IDA.Mail@charter.net
www.2ida.org
www.twitter.com/2idAssn
www.facebook.com/215063201924897/
www.facebook.com/groups/123352941013974/
Having spent a few years in 1st Brigade it is a bit sad to see it go:
SEOUL, South Korea — A decades-old 2nd Infantry Division unit stationed near the tense South-North Korea border will deactivate and be replaced by a U.S.-based rotational brigade combat team, according to the Pentagon.
The 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team will be deactivated in June 2015 and will be immediately replaced by approximately 4,600 soldiers from the 2nd Brigade Combat Team, 1st Cavalry Division stationed at Fort Hood, Texas, the Defense Department announced Thursday.
Troops are typically stationed in South Korea on one- or two-year tours, leading to frequent turnover within units. The deactivation and switch to nine-month rotational deployments is part of a U.S. Army rotational plan that calls for similarly sized and capable units from the United States to train and deploy together.
“There’s no loss in capability. Some would argue that the capability might even be slightly higher because it’s a trained unit that arrives there in Korea prepared to act,” Pentagon spokesman Col. Steve Warren told reporters. “We believe that any loss to continuity with familiarity to the terrain will be made up by a single cohesive unit that is familiar with working with each other.”
(Stars and Stripes)
You can read more at the link, but the problem you have with rotational units is that everyone is the new person all at the same time.
Talk about a bunch of hyperbole from the mayor of Uijongbu:
The Uijeongbu mayor boycotted a friendship concert at Camp Red Cloud last week after a 2nd Infantry Division soldier allegedly assaulted a taxi driver.
A second incident further exacerbated simmering resentment among local residents at what they see as a never-ending string of crimes by American soldiers, said a spokesman for Mayor Ahn Byung Yong.
2ID commander Maj. Gen. Thomas Vandal apologized in writing and in a telephone conversation with Ahn. Brig. Gen. Richard Kim, assistant division commander for maneuver, met with the mayor.
The soldier, identified by Uijeongbu police as a sergeant, is suspected of assaulting a taxi driver shortly after midnight on Sept. 2 on a road near the base’s back gate. The driver was taken to a hospital after losing control and running onto a curb. No information on his injuries was available………….
Another soldier was accused of flirting with a 26-year-old South Korean woman around 10 p.m. on Sept. 7 at Hoeryong Station, one stop from Uijeongbu, then shoving her toward a wall………………
“I wouldn’t go so far as to say people can’t step out onto the street at night. But they are nervous, and they are scared (of U.S. soldiers),” he said. [Stars & Stripes]
So two minor drunken incidents involving US soldiers means there is a crime wave and Koreans need to run in fear of every soldier they see? With thousands of US soldiers stationed and rotating through Korea there is always going to be crime committed by US soldiers just like there is crime committed by Koreans. Has the mayor eliminated all crime in Uijongbu? You know how many drunken Koreans I have seen on the subway push people? Heck how many drunk ajushis have gotten into shoving matches just on the sidewalks? Is the mayor going to grandstand and make an issue of that?
What matters in all of this is how these incidents are dealt with. There is no doubt that the 2ID leadership takes these incidents very seriously and will comply with the SOFA to have them properly investigated compared to if a Korean gets pushed on the subway by another Korean likely nothing would ever come of it.
After the decision to created a combined US & ROK division the two allies now have differing views on whether there will be a residual force left behind in Area 1:
South Korean defense officials said Friday the U.S. will not leave residual forces near the Demilitarized Zone after it shifts most of its troops on the peninsula to southern regional hubs, while American officials didn’t rule out the prospect of leaving some troops behind “temporarily.”
The two statements reflect the sensitivities north of Seoul, where cities already have plans for the land that will be handed over as American forces vacate bases there.
The Ministry of National Defense’s announcement that no residual forces would remain in Area I came one day after the two allies said they would form a combined division next year.
The division will initially be headquartered in Uijeongbu but will eventually move to Pyeongtaek as part of the relocation; and be led by an American commander with a South Korean deputy. Officials from both countries said the creation of the combined division would not affect the relocation.
U.S. Forces Korea, however, issued a statement Friday that said “no decision has been made to temporarily keep a U.S. residual north of Seoul. As with other issues involving Alliance agreements, a decision to keep a residual U.S. force will be managed in a collaborative manner.” [Stars & Stripes via reader tip]
You can read more at the link, but it will be interesting to see how USFK defines “temporary”.
