Tag: USFK

It appears even USFK is beginning to understand they need to learn to live with COVID by allowing travel to Seoul and indoor dining and movie theaters are also allowed. However, off-post bars, clubs, saunas, spas and karaokes are still off limits:

 The command overseeing U.S. troops in South Korea has lifted its pandemic ban on nonessential travel to Seoul after keeping the city off-limits more than three months. 

U.S. Forces Korea did away with the ban on Thursday, according to a news release. The command is responsible for about 28,500 service members, along with civilian employees, contractors and their families. 

USFK reminded its population to adhere to all South Korean rules and regulations aimed at stopping the spread of COVID-19. “USFK will continue to monitor and assess the COVID environment and will make additional adjustments to protect the force and our mission,” the release said.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

This is going to make life much easier for units that have been supporting troops in quarantine for the past two years:

Fully vaccinated American troops, family members and military contractors are no longer required to quarantine upon arrival in South Korea. 

U.S. Forces Korea, the command responsible for roughly 28,500 troops on the peninsula, announced in a press release Tuesday that it has done away with a mandatory seven-day COVID-19 quarantine for international arrivals “based on recent [South Korea] policy changes.”

South Korea’s government on Monday dropped a similar policy for vaccinated travelers; however, those who arrive from Pakistan, Uzbekistan, Ukraine and Myanmar are still required to isolate. 

To meet USFK’s fully vaccinated qualification, personnel must have either received a single or two-dose COVID-19 vaccine regimen within 14 to 180 days, or received the full vaccine series and a booster shot.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Oops:

A small South Korean military drone crashed into and left minor fire damage atop a water tower at a U.S. military outpost in Busan, according to a South Korean military spokesman.

The collision occurred around 9:14 a.m. Thursday at the Busan Storage Center, small installation in the southern coastal city, a spokesman said under the customary condition of anonymity.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but interestingly the drone was powered by a hydrogen fuel cell.

USFK recently upgraded its firepower with the newest model of the Apache attack helicopter:

U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) received deliveries of the latest Boeing Apache attack helicopters to the 4th Battalion (Attack) and 2nd Aviation Regiment (4-2 AB) at Camp Humphreys in Pyeongtaek, Gyeonggi, the force’s aviation unit said on Friday.  
   
In a Facebook post Friday, the 2nd Combat Aviation Brigade said that it finished fielding the new Apache helicopters slated for Camp Humphreys, the main USFK base on the Korean Peninsula, two days earlier.  
   
This is the first unit outside the continental United States to receive the newest version of the helicopter, dubbed AH-64 Version 6 (V6).  
   
The U.S. Army said on its website last month that a total of 24 of the latest Apache helicopters would be deployed to South Korea through the end of February. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

You can read more at the link.

Some good news from this article is that quarantine for USFK Soldiers has been lessened to 7 days and on-post indoor dining is now open again:

 New coronavirus cases from the U.S. military have declined for the fourth consecutive week, though infections across the country continue to reach record highs. 

U.S. Forces Korea, the command responsible for roughly 28,500 troops on the Korean Peninsula, counted 153 new COVID-19 cases in a seven-day period ending Monday. That’s 43 fewer than USFK reported the previous period and far below the pandemic high of 1,599 cases between Jan. 4-10. 

USFK leaders have said they are “proud” of their community’s “continued efforts” in adhering to mitigation measures.

“Their actions are reflected in our numbers and they speak for themselves,” spokesman Army Col. Lee Peters told Stars and Stripes in an email last week. “We’ve seen a continued downward trend … and expect to continue this trend.”

Dining in off-post restaurants remains off-limits, but after a monthlong pause, most dining facilities on U.S. installations are open again for indoor eating.

The command on Monday shortened its 10-day mandatory quarantine period to seven days to align with South Korean mandates. Those who already live in South Korea may quarantine at home with approval from their supervisors.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

If USFK servicemembers are any indication South Korea may still have a few weeks before they enter into a decline in COVID cases:

South Korea reached a new pandemic high of 20,270 coronavirus cases on Tuesday as the nation wrapped up the Lunar New Year holiday, three days typically marked by widespread travel on the peninsula.

Tuesday’s count was 1,928 cases higher than the previous record of 18,342 infections logged the day before, according to the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Center. Over 6,000 cases were reported in Gyeonggi province, where Camp Humphreys, the largest U.S. military base overseas, is located.

Meanwhile, U.S. Forces Korea reported 196 new COVID-19 cases for the week ending Monday, its third consecutive week of declining numbers. USFK confirmed 379 new infections the previous week and a pandemic high of 1,599 between Jan. 4 and 10.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but in Japan USFJ servicemembers are experiencing the same trend of lowering cases while Japan’s daily COVID case rate surged to over 142,000.

It looks like it is going to be a tough few weeks for U.S. troops in South Korea as they face nearly a soft lockdown on their off post activities:

 U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) said Saturday it has decided to toughen social distancing rules for its service members amid the growing number of infections among its troops.

The USFK had confirmed a weekly record high of 682 additional COVID-19 cases among its personnel from Dec. 28 to Tuesday. It did not offer more details, including the number of breakthrough cases or locations of the infected members.

“Due to the continued presence of COVID-19 within United States Forces Korea and South Korea, USFK has increased its health protection condition to ‘Bravo Plus’ peninsula-wide effective today at 12 p.m. until further notice,” the USFK said in a statement.

Under the scheme, the U.S. military will prohibit all personnel from visiting off-base facilities, such as indoor malls and gyms.

Access to bars and saunas will also be banned, though the USFK had previously banned such activities for non-vaccinated personnel only.

Seated dining at restaurants outside the base will also be restricted.

The USFK added it will prohibit its personnel from traveling to Seoul except for official duties or those who live there.

The total number of COVID-19 cases reported among the USFK-affiliated population totaled 3,027 as of Tuesday. The USFK said nearly 90 percent of its affiliated community is vaccinated.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

I have said for years that China would not just be a bystander during any conflict on the Korean peninsula and retired USFK General Robert Abrams believes in this viewpoint now as well:

South Korea’s Ministry of National Defense on Monday pushed back against remarks by a former commander of U.S. Forces Korea who said wartime plans against North Korea must account for China’s militaristic influence in the region.

North Korea’s weapons testing demonstrates that it persists as a threat, but the Chinese military also has “to be accounted for in the war plan,” retired Gen. Robert Abrams, who led USFK and U.N. Command until July, said on Voice of America on Saturday.

“It’s not a secret that they have increased their presence in and around the Korean Peninsula since 2010,” Abrams said, referring to China’s military.

“These are indications of things that have to be accounted for in the war plan that the current [guidance] does not contain,” he said.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.