Tag: ROK Army

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)

Here is an interesting article about two ROK female infantry NCOs that were awarded the US Expert Infantryman Badge:

Two women have earned the U.S. Army’s coveted Expert Infantryman Badge — and they’re members of the South Korean army.

Staff Sgts. Kim Min Kyoung and Kwon Min Zy are the first women, Korean or American, to earn the special-skills badge created in 1943.

“There were 21 soldiers from the (South Korean army’s) 21st Infantry Division that competed with them, pushing and pulling each other, helping each other out,” Kwon, 21, said through a translator.  [USA Today]

You can read more at the link, but the article is a bit misleading by making it appear these are the first women to pass the EIB test.  The US Army has for years allowed women to take the test:

Two Soldiers received special honors Friday during a ceremony at the Hilton Field Softball Complex recognizing those Soldiers who recently completed a week of tasks to earn the Expert Infantryman Badge.

Sgt. 1st Class Scott Wilkie, a drill sergeant with Company E, 3rd Battalion, 34th Infantry Regiment, was the only Soldier who received the “true blue” designation, meaning that he completed all the tasks without making any mistakes. Capt. Michelle Roberts, commander of Company F, 2nd Battalion, 60th Infantry Regiment, was the only female Soldier who passed the test.

Wilkie and Roberts were two of 42 Soldiers who passed from a field of 97 who began the testing.

“This is the first year that (I’ve seen) a (woman) compete in the 27 years I’ve been in the Army,” said Sgt. Maj. Michael Love, the noncommissioned officer in charge of the Expert Infantryman Badge, or EIB, testing. “I think it’s great.”

Roberts, an activated National Guard Soldier, said she believes it is her duty to be trained as well as possible in Soldiering skills, which is why she did not want to pass up the opportunity to go through the test and the two-week training in preparation for the EIB.  [Army.mil]

The problem that females that pass the EIB test have is that they are not in an infantry MOS, so they cannot wear the badge, but they receive the training certificate.  This is the same for non-infantry MOS males as well.  People have complained about this for years that the infantry branch are being badge protectors by not allowing other branches to wear the badge.  Since the ROK NCOs are in the infantry branch they get to wear the badge on their uniforms.  This seems very unfair to everyone else that has passed the testing that they cannot wear the badge, but foreign military personnel can.

This whole EIB testing gets back to my whole point of view on this that women should not be barred from any MOS or training as long as they meet the same established standards.  So did the ROK soldiers meet the same established standards as the US soldiers? According to this comment left on Facebook by an NCO claiming to have graded the testing, they did not:

If this claim is true and the ROK soldiers did not have to meet the same standards as US soldiers than this was nothing more than a PR stunt by 2ID.  The statistics may also give some indication that different standards were used.  According to the article only 18% of 2ID soldiers passed, but 18 of 21 (85%) of ROK soldiers passed the testing.  That is a big difference in percentages though the ROK Army likely sent 21 of their best soldiers.  Even if it was their best soldiers should the percentages be that skewed?  Anyway I would be interested to hear what others who may have been part of the EIB testing have to say about this issue.

Lawmakers of the National Assembly Defense Committee inspect the K2 main battle tank built by Hyundai Rotem during their visit to the company’s plant in Changwon, southeast South Korea, on Oct. 22, 2014. (Yonhap)