Category: Uncategorized

It has been nearly a decade since these bases were closed and they have finally been handed over to the South Korean government:

The United States on Wednesday returned four of its military bases in South Korea in a decision to end a yearslong delay caused by differences on decontamination procedures and to allay worries over the adverse impact of the delay on regional development schemes.

South Korea and the U.S. also initiated the long-awaited return process for the Yongsan Garrison in central Seoul, once home to the headquarters of the U.S. Forces Korea (USFK), to ensure that a mega project to establish a national park there proceeds as scheduled.

The four returned bases are Camps Eagle and Long in Wonju, 130 kilometers east of Seoul; parcels of Camp Market in Bupyeong, just west of the capital; and the Shea Range parcel at Camp Hovey in Dongducheon, just north of Seoul. They were already closed between 2009 and 2011.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but USFK made no concessions on the environmental clean up concerns that South Korea keeps making. The article speculates that the environmental clean up costs for the U.S. bases may be something they try to tie to the ongoing cost sharing negotiations.

A strategy they could use is that the cleanup of the closed out U.S. bases costs X amount of money to the ROK government and thus should lower the amount of money that the U.S. government is saying Seoul should pay each year.

It appears that South Korea has been conquered by all things Frozen:

Retailers are rolling out a variety of “Frozen”-themed merchandise for fans of all ages, as Korean moviegoers join the worldwide frenzy over Disney’s latest release “Frozen 2,” according to industry officials Tuesday.

According to the Korean Film Council (KOFIC), the latest Disney film has attracted 4.79 million viewers in Korea as of Monday, just five days after its opening here. 

Along with the movie’s soaring popularity, sales of Frozen-themed products are going up. 

7-Eleven rolled out “Frozen” character figures, capsule toys, snow globe DIY kits, Lego sets and sticker books. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link.

There is already much tension facing the alliance between the U.S. and the ROK and now the Russians want to create tension between Japan and the U.S. as well:

 Russia’s foreign minister says the U.S.-Japan security alliance poses “a problem” for Russia-Japan relations and complicates peace treaty talks.

The two countries have been struggling to negotiate a peace treaty after World War II because of a territorial dispute. The Soviet Union took the four southernmost Kuril Islands during the final days of the war, which Japan asserts territorial rights to.

Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said Saturday that Japan’s “military alliance with Washington, of course, is a problem” when it comes to changing the nature of the country’s relationship with Russia.

Lavrov said the Japanese government promised to address Russia’s concerns.

He added that implementation of the 1956 Soviet-Japanese Declaration, which outlined conditions for a peace treaty, was not possible with the U.S. military presence in Japan.

Military Times

You can read more at the link.

Here is what General Milley recently told reporters about the US troop presence in South Korea:

 U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Gen. Mark Milley has said the American public poses questions about why the United States should station troops in South Korea and Japan and why the Asian allies can’t pay for their own defense, according to a Pentagon account of his recent conversation with reporters.

Milley made the remark Sunday as he departed for the Indo-Pacific region, his first overseas trip since taking office in September.

He was emphasizing the importance of the U.S. alliances with South Korea and Japan, countries he will visit in the coming week.

“He said the average American looking at the forward deployed U.S. troops in South Korea and Japan ask some fundamental questions: Why are they needed there? How much does it cost? These are very rich and wealthy countries, why can’t they defend themselves?” the general was quoted as telling reporters traveling with him, according to the post on the Pentagon’s website.

“These are main street USA questions,” Milley added. “It is incumbent on us … to make sure we adequately explain how the U.S. military is a stabilizing force in Northeast Asia in preventing and deterring the outbreak of armed conflict.”

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Another major US-ROK exercise has been cancelled:

South Korea and the United States are expected to skip a combined wintertime air exercise just as they did last year to support ongoing diplomacy for the denuclearization of North Korea, sources said Sunday. 

Military authorities of the two countries “shared the understanding” on the postponement of the Vigilant Ace air exercise that usually takes place around December, a source said, adding that a final decision will be made when the two countries hold annual defense ministers talks later this month.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but as I have been saying I think the intent of the cancellation of these exercises is to show the world community that the U.S. has been greatly reasonable in making concessions in order to work out a deal with the Kim regime. So if the Kim regime begins a cycle of major provocations again, the U.S. can make a strong case that they have tried all other measures with North Korea and can justify taking tougher actions that have not been tried yet.

The only uniform color worse than the Army’s ACU is now gone as well:

Sailors’ last day to wear a blue camouflage uniform beloved by some and derided by others is here.

The Type I Navy Working Uniform, dubbed the “blueberry,” will no longer be authorized for wear as of Tuesday, according to a timeline sent out by the Navy three years ago.

The eight-point cap is also being updated with the anchor, USS Constitution and eagle emblem stitched into the front-center panel, where sailors were previously allowed to put rank insignia.

Blueberries are being discontinued after an 11-year run. First introduced in 2008 as part of a uniform modernization program based on sailor input, the blue camouflage uniform was intended to be worn by enlisted and officers to “project a unified image/appearance regardless of rank,” a Navy spokesman said via email.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Here is a mass casualty exercise recently conducted at Yongsan Garrison:

Starting Tuesday, this Army post in the middle of Seoul will rely on local emergency services from outside the gates when the base hospital suspends its emergency services. To test that relationship, the garrison security force on Thursday practiced summoning South Korean first responders to a pretend slasher attack by a knife-wielding soldier that yielded several casualties. “As the hospital begins to transition and move farther south, we are going to rely on host nation emergency medical services to provide response to medical emergencies on the installation,” Sgt. 1st Class Daniel Nichols, Yongsan provost sergeant, told Stars and Stripes. “Today, part of what we are testing is the ability to coordinate with the host nation EMS, get them onto the installation, and respond to a situation quickly.” 

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link.

Great visit to ROK Marine Corps 1st Marine Division! Building strong, tough, resilient Marines who are ready for the hardships of ground combat. These pre-Ranger candidates were fired up! #wegotogether #KatchiKapshida pic.twitter.com/DG3bHEFcqs

— Robert Abrams (@DogFaceSoldier) September 25, 2019