Tag: ROK Army

The measures the ROK Army is taking to stop sex crimes is even stricter than anything we have seen in the US Army yet:

The Army is scrambling to come up with a new code of behavior in response to a recent series of sex crimes in barracks.

“A top brass meeting held on Tuesday decided to work out a code of conduct to cope with sex crimes,” an Army spokesman said Thursday. “It will be issued in the name of the Army chief of staff and violators will be subject to punishment under military law.”

Male or female soldiers will be banned from visiting the quarters of soldiers of the opposite sex alone. Soldiers of different genders will only be allowed to shake hands with one hand.

Soldiers of different ranks will be prohibited from dating, and no soldier will be allowed to travel, or stay in the same office, alone with another of the opposite sex. When it is inevitable that they are alone in the same office, they must leave the door open.  [Chosun Ilbo]

You can read more at the link.

Female noncommissioned officers salute during their commission ceremony at the Special Warfare Training Group in Gwangju, south of Seoul, on Jan. 30, 2015. (Yonhap)

It is not looking good for those brigade commander because he has already admitted to what he complains was consensual sex with the staff sergeant:

The military arrested a brigade commander on Tuesday over allegations that he raped a female subordinate multiple times in his military residence in Gangwon, the latest in a series of sexual abuse cases that have shaken the military since last year.

The Army reported on Tuesday that it had arrested the colonel in Gangwon at around 3 p.m., after collecting testimony he had sexually abused a 21-year-old staff sergeant on several occasions since late last year.

The military said it first found out about the case involving the 47-year-old colonel on Monday. His identity has not been revealed, and the military suspects he sexually assaulted the woman more than once at his military residence. The suspect has reportedly denied the charge, claiming the contact was consensual, while the victim has maintained it was forced.

The brigade commander’s arrest follows the apprehension of a major in the same unit, who stands accused of sexually harassing a female staff sergeant.  [Joong Ang Ilbo]

You can read more at the link, but I wonder if the ROK Army has the same regulations forbidding relationships like the US Army has?

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.

An artillery firing drill is underway at a South Korean military unit near the border with North Korea in Goseong County, Gangwon Province, on Dec. 16, 2014. (Yonhap)

Maybe this is just a translation error, but does anyone know how does the ROK Army have 18-year old Staff Sergeants?

A South Korean Army sergeant was arrested Thursday on charges of repeated sexual assaults of an 18-year-old solider, local media reported.

The 26-year-old sergeant first class, identified only as Kim, is accused of having raped his junior colleague, a staff sergeant who is also male, several times since March this year.  [Korea Observer]

You can read more at the link.

The ROK Army already has a 100 of this tanks deployed and are set to double their number by 2017:

The military plans to complete the deployment of some 100 next-generation tanks equipped with an indigenous engine and transmission by the year 2017, according to the arms procurement agency, Wednesday.

The Defense Acquisition Program Administration (DAPA) said the upgraded K-2 Black Panther will be deployed by the end of the year.

The decision came during a defense project committee meeting presided over by Defense Minister Han Min-koo.

The military has been postponing the deployment of the weapons system as it had failed Army requirements because of faulty components.

The Joint Chiefs of Staff decided to lower the standard for its acceleration performance, enabling the deployment of the advanced combat vehicle.

DAPA spokesman Kim Si-cheol explained that the deployment of the vehicle will help the military to strengthen its combat capability as they will have upgraded mobility and firepower suitable for any future warfare environment.

He expressed confidence with the equipment the military will be able to maintain upper hand over North Korea. “We also expect the new battle tanks will be exported more actively,” Kim said during a press briefing.  [Korea Times]

This is actually a very good tank for what the ROK Army needs it to do.  However, their biggest goal with the K2 has been to keep a production line open to sell these tanks to international customers like Turkey which is working with the ROK to co-develop their new Altay main battle tank.

Armed carriers get out of a Navy vessel on a beach in Pohang City, North Gyeongsang Province, on Nov. 18, 2014, as part of the Hoguk exercise involving the Army, Navy, Air Force and Marine Corps against North Korea’s possible provocations. (Yonhap)

Soldiers of a front-line Army unit cover the windows of their barracks with vinyl in Cheolwon, Gangwon Province, on Oct. 23, 2014, in preparation for the cold winter. (Yonhap)