If you believe in the results of computerized wargames than the North Koreans do not stand a chance against USFK:
This year’s joint exercise with U.S. forces demonstrated that the military might of the two allies could bring the North Korean command to its knees, a senior military official said Tuesday.
The official, who spoke on the condition of anonymity, said that the 2016 Ulchi Freedom Guardian (UFG), carried out between Aug. 22 and Sept. 2, and involving a simulated war game pitting Korea-U.S. joint forces against the North Korean military, was run with the Operation Plan (Oplan) 5015, which was first included in the UFG exercise last year.
Oplan 5015 calls for pre-emptive strikes against North Korea’s nuclear and ballistic missiles facilities as well as its top leaders.
“At the early phase of the simulation war game,” said the official, “the two sides had a series of fierce battles. But as time went by, the allied forces were able to strike back and advance towards the north of Pyongyang and eventually annihilated the leadership in the capital.” [Joong Ang Ilbo]
The games are on and no I am not talking about the Olympics:
The U.S. and South Korea kicked off a new round of war games Monday despite protests from the North, which threatened a pre-emptive nuclear strike.
The annual Ulchi Freedom Guardian exercises come as relations between the two Koreas have sharply deteriorated since North Korea conducted its fourth underground atomic test in January. Tensions spiked again last week when Seoul confirmed that a senior North Korean diplomat had defected from his post at Pyongyang’s embassy in London.
About 25,000 U.S. servicemembers — including 2,500 from areas off the peninsula — and 50,000 South Korean forces will participate in the nearly two-week drills, which are mainly computer simulations.
The U.N. military armistice commission gave the North Koreans advance notice about the exercise, which runs through Sept. 2, and stressed its “nonprovocative nature,” the Combined Forces Command said in a statement. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read more at the link, but it will be interesting to see what provocation North Korea tries for this UFG.
This photo taken on Aug. 15, 2016, shows 2nd Infantry Division Commander Theodore D. Martin making a salute to a KATUSA veteran after awarding him a letter of appreciation during the 66th anniversary of KATUSA’s foundation held at Camp Jackson in Uijeongbu, northern Seoul. (Yonhap)
The Korean Augmentation Troops to the U.S. Army (KATUSA) celebrated the 66th anniversary of its foundation Monday, according to the KATUSA Veterans Association.
Some 400 U.S. military officials, KATUSA war veterans, KATUSA reservists and active-duty KATUSA soldiers participated in the event at Camp Jackson, a U.S. military base, in Uijeongbu, north of Seoul.
KATUSA Veterans Association Chairman Kim Jong-wook and 2nd Infantry Division Commander Theodore D. Martin were among the participants. Chairman Kim delivered a welcoming speech following a silent tribute to patriotic martyrs and then Commander Martin as guest speaker gave a keynote speech on the meaning of the 66th anniversary for the two allies.
Commander Martin said KATUSA has operated like a set of well-running wheels for the U.S. and South Korean armies for the past 66 years. He asked KATUSA soldiers to continue their bridging role in strengthening the bilateral alliance.
“Today, the strength of the KATUSA Program serves as a symbol of the friendship and continued commitment between the two countries. This strength is vital, and it enhances our combined ability to deter aggression and maintain peace in the Korean Peninsula,” he said. [Yonhap]
You can read more at the link to include a story about a South Korean family that had three generations serve in the KATUSA program. The KATUSA program has definitely been a success since its founding by General Douglas MacArthur during the Korean War.
Hopefully everyone recovers from their injuries with no serious issues:
Two Apache helicopters collided Friday at Camp Humphreys, injuring four U.S. soldiers, a spokesman said.
The AH-64 helicopters were getting ready to take off when the collision occurred at the base south of Seoul, said Lt. Col. Richard Hyde, the 2nd Infantry Division spokesman.
The four soldiers were taken to nearby hospitals with minor injuries, but all have been released, he said Sunday.
The military did not give a cause, saying an investigation is under way. [Stars & Stripes]
Condolences to the family of this deceased 2ID soldier:
A 2nd Infantry Division soldier was found dead over the weekend in her apartment north of Seoul.
Sgt. Jacqueline M. Anderson, 26, of Leesville, La., died Sunday afternoon in her Dongducheon residence, a 2ID press release said. Cause of death is still under investigation.
Anderson’s husband asked a neighbor to call police after finding her unconscious, said a police official in Dongducheon, home to Camp Casey and other U.S. bases near the border with North Korea. She was already dead when officers arrived, the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because of the ongoing investigation.
Anderson, assigned to Headquarters and Headquarters Battery, 1st Battalion, 38th Field Artillery Regiment, 210th Field Artillery Brigade, was stationed in Dongducheon with her husband, Sgt. Carl William Anderson, who is also with the 210th Field Artillery Brigade. [Stars & Stripes]
It is finally happening which is amazing considering how many years we have been hearing that this was going to happen.
A view from the roof of the future 2nd Infantry Division headquarters at Camp Humphreys on June 5, 2016. The Army is moving most of its forces, including the headquarters for U.S. Forces Korea, the 8th Army and the 2nd Infantry Division, to the expanded garrison south of Seoul.
U.S. forces in South Korea are finally starting to move to their new headquarters south of Seoul, although the much-delayed expansion of Camp Humphreys won’t be finished for several years.
First up is the Fort Hood, Texas-based 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry Regiment, which is packing up and redeploying south this week from the mountainous area near the border with North Korea.
Soldiers loaded Abrams tanks and other armored vehicles on flat rail cars Thursday, taking advantage of a new railhead at Humphreys and using late-night convoys to avoid worsening Seoul’s tangled traffic. One whistled the theme song from “M*A*S*H,” a long-running TV series about the Korean War that was set in the area. A separate train was carrying soldiers to Humphreys along with the vehicles so they could jump out to fight if needed.
Several units, including the 304th Signal Battalion and military police, have already redeployed to Camp Humphreys — which will be spread over more than 3,500 acres near the port city of Pyeongtaek.
But the 2nd Battalion, 8th Cavalry, will be the vanguard of the historic move by the 2nd Infantry Division, which has been stationed near the world’s most heavily militarized border for decades. [Stars & Stripes]
You can read the rest at the link. Just think this was supposed to be completed back in 2008. According to the article USFK officials have declined to give an end date of when the move will be complete and instead call it conditions based.
It looks like the “Not In My Backyard” crowd has already started protesting the deployment of the THAAD missile defense system to South Korea:
The official announcement of deployment of an advanced U.S. missile defense system in Korea is bringing a huge backlash from residents of areas which are rumored to be candidate sites for the system.
People in the regions claim the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) will pose serious health risks to them and environmental damage due to strong electromagnetic waves.
Immediately after the announcement Friday, residents in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi Province, and Waegwan of Chilgok County in North Gyeongsang Province, the two key candidate locations, expressed vehement opposition.
A coalition of 25 civic groups in Pyeongtaek, where the United States Forces Korea (USKF) headquarters will be moved, said they will hold a press conference on July 19 to announce their protest plans to block the possible deployment there.
“The noise and electromagnetic waves emanating from THAAD radar will pose grave health threats to residents here,” the coalition said in a statement. [Korea Times]
You can read more at the link, but like most Korean protests these people are blatantly lying to get public sentiment behind them. Anyone can Google and find out the safe keep out zones for the THAAD radar. In fact it is published in the draft Environmental Assessment document for the THAAD unit on Guam that can be downloaded at this link. Here is an excerpt from the document that discusses the safe keep out zones for the radar:
Operation of the THAAD battery requires the following exclusion zones along +/- 90 degrees of the axis of orientation of the THAAD radar system to avoid injury to personnel and damage to equipment from electromagnetic radiation (EMR) emitted from that radar: 328 feet (100 meters) for personnel, 1,640 feet (500 meters) for equipment, and 3.4 miles (5.5 kilometers) for aircraft. An earthen berm in front of the radar further reduces the ground-level EMR exposure risks. For aircraft, a Temporary Flight Restriction (TFR) was established for the THAAD expeditionary mission starting in April 2013. The airspace coordination procedures for this flight restriction were documented in a Letter of Agreement between the Army, USAF, FAA, and Guam Air Route Traffic Control Center. Under Alternative 1, the TFR would continue to be used during THAAD radar operations.
So unless the THAAD radar is sitting 100 meters directly in front of someones house they will not be exposed to harmful EMR. Aircraft will need to stay 5.5 kilometers away from the radar which as the document shows on Guam they put restricted airspace measures over the radar site. These same safety measures will have to be done in Korea which I am sure USFK planners will do.
Gen. Vincent Brooks (L), commander of United States Forces Korea, hands over the flag of the 7th Air Force to Lt. Gen. Thomas Bergeson, new deputy commander of U.S. Forces Korea and the 7th Air Force commander, during a ceremony at Osan Air Base, south of Seoul, on July 8, 2016, to mark Bergeson`s inauguration. (Yonhap)
A new deputy chief of United States Forces Korea (USFK) took command on Friday, vowing to put more effort into enhancing the alliance between the U.S. and South Korea so as to forge an “ever stronger” partnership, the U.S. military said.
Air Force Maj. Gen. Thomas Bergeson took office as the deputy commander of the United Nations Command and the USFK, replacing Lt. Gen. Terrence O’Shaughnessy in the ceremony held at Osan Air Base in Pyeongtaek, south of Seoul, the USFK’s Seventh Air Force said in a statement.
With the new position, Bergeson also serves as the commanding general of the Seventh Air Force, as well as the air commander of the South Korea-U.S. Combined Forces Command.
“I look forward to enhancing the capabilities of our team and transforming the alliance into an ever stronger partnership,” Bergeson said.
He stressed the role of South Korea as a “key contributor” to regional peace.
“We will continue to refocus our training and exercises in order to maximize our combat capability and enhance our readiness to ‘fight tonight.'”
His inauguration came at a critical time when Seoul and Washington are deploying the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD), an advanced U.S. missile defense system, on South Korean soil.
If THAAD is deployed with the USFK, the chief commander of the Seventh Air Force will effectively be in charge of controlling the THAAD unit on behalf of the USFK commander, according to a South Korean military official.
Bergeson served as the director at the Pentagon’s legislative liaison for the U.S. Air Force secretary. He is an F-15 and F-22 pilot who has a more than 3,100 hours of flight time under his belt, the U.S. military said.
O’Shaughnessy will assume command of the Pacific Air Force at Hickam Air Force Base in Hawaii, it also said. [Yonhap]
Lieutenant General O’Shaughnessy in my opinion was a great commander for 7th Air Force and will do great things at PACAF as well.
United States Forces Korea (USFK) commander Gen. Vincent Brooks (L) shakes hands with Maj. Gen. David Puster, the outgoing deputy commander of USFK’s Eighth Army, in a change of command ceremony held at the USFK headquarters in Yongsan, central Seoul, on July 7, 2016. Brig. Gen. Tammy Smith replaces Maj. Gen. Puster. (Yonhap)
