This is another way for South Korea to respond to increasing provocative behavior from North Korea:
South Korea’s army held live-fire artillery practice near the border with North Korea for the first time in six years, and the first such move since suspending a ban on live drills in June. The artillery drill was conducted at an unspecified firing range within three miles of the Military Demarcation Line, the actual border dividing the Korean Peninsula, according to a news release Tuesday from the South Korean army.
The border is inside the 2½-mile-wide Demilitarized Zone. Numerous air and artillery ranges are scattered near the border with North Korea. U.S. and South Korean troops conduct drills throughout the year at the 3,390-acre Rodriguez Live Fire Complex roughly 16 miles south of the border. Tuesday’s artillery drill focused on South Korea’s “response capabilities and fire preparedness” in the event of North Korean provocations, the release said. The army said it plans to regularly conduct artillery drills around the area for the foreseeable future.
Tanks, howitzers, rocket launchers at drill South Korean-made K1E1 tanks, K9 howitzers and Chunmoo multiple rocket launchers are on standby for an integrated field maneuver at the training field of the Army’s 17th Division in Incheon, 27 kilometers west of Seoul, on June 21, 2024. (Yonhap)
Big salute to Jin for completing his mandatory military service instead of trying to find some kind of exemption to get out of it:
Jin, the oldest member of K-pop supergroup BTS, was discharged from his 18 months of mandatory military service Wednesday, with fans worldwide eagerly anticipating his return to the music scene.
After hugging his fellow soldiers in turn during a brief, teary farewell ceremony inside the 5th Army Infantry Division in Yeoncheon, 61 kilometers north of Seoul, the singer walked out of the compound at about 9 a.m. to be welcomed by his bandmates.
During his service, he served as an assistant drill instructor at the Army recruit training center there.
After saluting in front of the main gate, Jin received a bouquet of flowers and was seen smiling brightly as he reunited with five of his bandmates — J-Hope, RM, Jimin, V and Jungkook. RM, currently serving in a military brass band, marked the occasion with a celebratory saxophone performance of the band’s megahit single “Dynamite.”
I had no idea that the ROK military does not allow trainees to run with their gear on. After this incident I am sure word is going to get out broadly to not allow trainees to run with gear on:
A violation of military regulation occurred with a recent trainee soldier’s death during a training exercise, an Army official told local media Monday.
In a meeting with reporters, the unnamed official confirmed that there “had been a situation that was not in accordance with (military) regulation” during the exercise. The official refused to elaborate, saying the case was still under investigation by the police and the military.
According to the Army, the trainee soldier died Saturday while being treated at a civilian hospital, two days after collapsing at a unit in Inje, Gangwon Province, at around 5:20 p.m. on Thursday.
The deceased had been carrying out a training exercise that is not part of the regular program, conducted usually as a disciplinary action when the commander deems it necessary. A total of six soldiers took part in the said training, which involved them running laps around the grounds while fully equipped with their gear.
30mm: Tatatatatatata 40mm: Pompompom 120mm: Boomboom This is how South Korea devastate mountains. (The Combined Joint Live-Fire Exercise 2023) F-16, F-15, F-35, FA-50, Apache and many other critical assets attended this annual large live fire exercise. Navy sent their missiles… pic.twitter.com/9Ax2awWT8u
Anti-terror drill Soldiers from the Army’s 52nd Infantry Division carry out an anti-terror drill at a broadcaster in Seoul on March 6, 2024, as part of the ongoing Freedom Shield 2024 exercise between South Korea and the United States against North Korean provocations. (Yonhap)
River-crossing drill Soldiers riding in K-21 armored vehicles take part in a river-crossing drill at a training range in Pocheon, just 25 kilometers south of the inter-Korean border, on Jan. 24, 2024, as the Army’s Capital Mechanized Infantry Division conducts a wintertime exercise as part of efforts to strengthen its combat preparedness. (Yonhap)
The complaints about this training sound like a whole lot to do about nothing. If these athletes cannot do morning physical fitness training or row a rubber boat they probably should not be Olympic athletes to begin with:
Members of South Korean women’s national handball team perform a team-building exercise with rubber boats during a training at a boot camp for the Marine Corps in Pohang, South Korea, on March 30, 2016. South Korea’s Olympic chief has defended a decision to send hundreds of athletes to a military camp next week as part of preparations for the 2024 Games in Paris, citing a need to instill mental toughness in competitors. (Choe Dong-joon/Newsis via AP)
South Korea’s Olympic chief has defended a decision to send hundreds of athletes to a military camp next week as part of preparations for the 2024 Games in Paris, citing a need to instill mental toughness in competitors.
About 400 athletes, including women, will arrive at a marine boot camp in the southeastern port city of Pohang on Monday for a three-day training aimed at building resilience and teamwork, the Korean Sport and Olympic Committee said.
The program, pushed by the committee’s president, Lee Kee-Heung, has faced criticism from politicians and media who described the training camp as outdated and showing an unhealthy obsession with medals.
Officials at the committee have played down concerns about the potential for injuries, saying the athletes will not be forced into the harsher types of military training. Morning jogs, rubber-boat riding and events aimed at building camaraderie will be on the program. Sports officials are still finalizing details of the camp with the Korea Marine Corps., committee official Yun Kyoung-ho said Thursday.
Unlike those that have avoided the mandatory military service obligation in Korea, I definitely have respect for the BTS members who are putting their lives on hold to serve their country:
The remaining four members of K-pop megastar BTS — RM, Jimin, V and Jungkook — will begin their mandatory military service next month, music industry sources said Wednesday.
According to the sources well informed of the matter, RM and V will enlist on Dec. 11, followed by Jimin and Jungkook the next day.
In South Korea, all able-bodied men are required to serve in the military for about two years. The members were allowed to postpone their military service until the end of the year when they turn 30, under a conscription law revised in 2020.
New Army chief inaugurated New Army Chief of Staff Gen. Park An-su speaks during the change-of-command ceremony at Gyeryongdae, South Korea’s main military compound, in the city of Gyeryong, central South Korea, on Oct. 31, 2023. (Yonhap)
