Tag: USFK

The long planned for closure of Yongsan Garrison in Seoul will officially happen over the next couple of months:

The U.S. Forces Korea will end all services at a major military base in the heart of Seoul within this year to prepare the return of the land to the South Korean government, military officials said Saturday. 

The U.S. military has been moving its bases from around the country to a refurbished garrison in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul, since 2017.

While the USFK headquarters and the Eighth Army have moved to the new headquarters, called Camp Humphreys, the U.S. military has been preparing to vacate Yongsan Garrison in central Seoul to speed up the relocation processes.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest on the return of closed out U.S. military bases in South Korea:

Cheong Wa Dae said Friday it will redouble efforts for the early return of more than two dozen U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) bases.

It was briefing media on the results of a weekly meeting of the National Security Council’s (NSC) standing committee.

The USFK has been moving its bases nationwide mainly to a refurbished garrison in Pyeongtaek, some 70 kilometers south of Seoul. It’s named Camp Humphreys.

The process of South Korea regaining the sites of the affected bases has been going slowly, however, partly due to handling of polluted soil.

In the session, presided over by Chung Eui-yong, director of Cheong Wa Dae’s national security office, the NSC panel members agreed to “push actively for an early return” of the sites of 26 USFK bases, which will be vacant or have already been, according to Cheong Wa Dae.

“In particular, (they) agreed to begin the return process on the Yongsan base (in central Seoul) within this year,” it said.

Top security officials, including the defense minister, especially decided to seek the return of four bases at the earliest possible date, it added.

They are Camp Long and Camp Eagle in Wonju, Gangwon Province, as well as Camp Market in Incheon and Camp Hovey in Dongducheon, Gyeonggi Province.

Those who reside in nearby areas have suffered economic troubles because of a long delay in the return of the bases, the NSC officials noted.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

There will probably be more missiles being fired by North Korea next week as the joint exercise between the ROK and South Korea is scheduled to begin:

South Korea and the United States will stage joint military drills as scheduled despite warnings from North Korea, the South Korean military authority said Sunday.

The joint drills will begin Monday with a computer-simulated command post exercise (CPX) to cope with any emergency on the Korean Peninsula and last for half a month, according to the authority.

After the CPX, the allies will spend the remaining 10 days intensively verifying Seoul’s capabilities for its envisioned retaking of wartime operational control (OPCON) of its troops from Washington.

But many watchers say the joint military drills could prompt further provocation from the North.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Considering that last year the US negotiators had to fight to get the ROK to pay $879 million for this year’s upkeep, I don’t expect them to pay $5 billion next year:

South Korea and the United States have agreed to conduct discussions in a “reasonable and fair” way on how to share the cost for the upkeep of American troops here, a foreign ministry official here said Tuesday.

The two sides talked about the upcoming negotiations over Seoul’s share of the cost for the stationing of the 28,500-strong U.S. Forces Korea (USFK) for next year, when U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton visited Korea last week, the official said.

The local daily JoongAng Ilbo reported that Washington has tentatively decided to request that Seoul pay US$5 billion under a renewed bilateral cost-sharing arrangement for next year, more than a fivefold increase from the previous year.

“When U.S. National Security Adviser John Bolton was visiting Korea on July 23 and 24, South Korea and the U.S. agreed to have consultations over the sharing of the defense cost in a reasonable and fair direction,” the official said on condition of anonymity.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but it would have been interesting to see the face of Moon administration officials when John Bolton dropped the $5 billion number.

The Blue House needs to have this exercise happen because it is part of the glide path for the ROK to take back operational control (OPCON) from the U.S. Taking back OPCON has long been a left wing goal that the Moon administration is trying to make happen:

The presidential office Cheong Wa Dae said Friday that South Korea and the United States will proceed with their planned joint military drills as scheduled, despite North Korea’s warning.

North Korea’s state media said earlier in the day that the two short-range ballistic missiles the country fired Thursday were a “solemn warning” against South Korea, calling for the suspension of Seoul’s planned military exercises and its purchase of what it called offensive weapons.

Cheong Wa Dae said it will not issue an official statement regarding reports by the North’s media as it only responds to a country’s official stance.

When asked about the possibility to review the allies’ military drills, “It is known that nothing has changed,” a presidential official told reporters, asking not to be named.

Seoul and Washington plan to conduct the summertime exercise, named 19-2 Dong Maeng, to verify Seoul’s capabilities for its envisioned retaking of wartime operational control (OPCON) of its troops from Washington.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

This has been a long time coming since it has been plague by delays and shoddy construction:

The United States took possession of a state-of-the-art, 68-bed hospital at the new U.S. military headquarters in South Korea during a ceremony Wednesday.

The handover put the $215 million facility one step closer to opening, seven years after the military broke ground on it.

The Brian D. Allgood Army Community Hospital and ambulatory care center, the namesake of the hospital that will close at Yongsan Garrison in Seoul, is scheduled to officially open for patients on Nov. 15.

That will be a relief for the more than 30,000 Americans based at Camp Humphreys, many of whom must commute some 55 miles north to the South Korean capital for services, including behavioral health care and childbirth.

On Wednesday, speakers alluded to the problems that faced the South Korean-funded construction project. The hospital is a centerpiece of the nearly $11 billion effort to expand Camp Humphreys, a former remote outpost, as part of the long-delayed relocation of most American forces to the south of Seoul.

“Today is one of those days that I was afraid would never come,” said Col. Teresa Schlosser, commander of the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Far East District. She attended the ceremony on her last day as district commander.

“I appreciate being able to close out this hospital after all the years of hard work to get it across the finish line,” she said.The United States took possession of a state-of-the-art, 68-bed hospital at the new U.S. military headquarters in South Korea during a ceremony Wednesday.

The handover put the $215 million facility one step closer to opening, seven years after the military broke ground on it.

The Brian D. Allgood Army Community Hospital and ambulatory care center, the namesake of the hospital that will close at Yongsan Garrison in Seoul, is scheduled to officially open for patients on Nov. 15.

That will be a relief for the more than 30,000 Americans based at Camp Humphreys, many of whom must commute some 55 miles north to the South Korean capital for services, including behavioral health care and childbirth.

Stars & Stripes

You can read more at the link, but ground was first broken to build the hospital in 2012. It took seven years to build this hospital when I have seen entire new neighborhoods in South Korea constructed faster.

Does anyone have any suggestions on what to rename the joint US-ROK exercise to not upset Kim Jong-un?:

South Korea and the United States are reportedly considering conducting a joint military exercise early next month as scheduled, but under a different name.

The allies were known to have planned to conduct the exercise, named 19-2 Dong Maeng, to evaluate Seoul’s readiness to take over wartime operational control (OPCON) of its troops from Washington.

But multiple military sources said on Sunday that the two sides are reviewing whether to rename it in consideration of recent warnings from North Korea that the drill could affect its nuclear negotiations with the United States.

One of the possible new names to replace Dong Maeng, which means alliance in English, reportedly includes “OPCON Verification Exercise.”

The military sources said that the allies plan to hold the computer-simulated command post exercise for three weeks in early August.

KBS World Radio

Not as much as you think. Jack-@$$-ery is not limited to only the hours of 0100-0500. https://t.co/u7tdLbiER3

— Robert Abrams (@DogFaceSoldier) July 21, 2019

Here is another claim that has come out of the allegation that USFK tried to add Japan as part of the United Nations Command (UNC); they also wanted Germany to join as well:

 Early this year, the UNC finalized a legal review to lowering the bar for which countries can serve as sending states, according to sources, which could include nations like Japan or Germany.

It was also revealed by South Korea’s Defense Ministry on Thursday that the United States tried to have Germany dispatch military officers to the UNC, but the plan fizzled out due to opposition from Seoul. 

Joong Ang Ilbo

USFK for their part has denied the allegation they tried to have Japan become part of the UNC.

Here is USFK’s response to South Korean media reports that the U.S. was trying to add Japan as a member of the UNC:

United Nations Command continues to work closely with members of the Republic of Korea government on all aspects of the UNC organizational structure.

News reports alleging Japan being considered as a potential Sending State are flagrantly false. UNC has not offered, nor has Japan requested Sending State designation.

UNC is focused on maintaining peace and security on the peninsula as it has successfully done for more than 69 years to the great benefit of the region. Furthermore, as a top priority, UNC endeavors to support diplomatic efforts to find a lasting peace.

“UNC strives to work transparently and effectively with our participating member states and the Republic of Korea.,” said Gen. Robert B. “Abe” Abrams, UNC commander.

UNC is the home for international commitments which provides a ready-made coalition of longstanding friends and support, including in times of crisis.  UNC is committed to a stable transition to a new combined defense system following the transfer of wartime operational control to a ROK four-star led Combined Forces Command. There is no plan to make UNC an operational command.  Any suggestions otherwise are patently false. 

USFK.mil

Yonhap is reporting that this issue may have been caused by a mistranslation:

Japan is already home to a number of UNC rear bases that would be mobilized in the event of a crisis in Korea.

Speaking of the U.S.’ references to Japan’s role within the UNC in a recently issued annual publication, the Seoul ministry also said there seems to have been a “mistranslation” of the English text into Korean.

In the English version of the 2019 Strategic Digest, the U.S. said the UNC “continues to ensure the support and force flow through Japan that would be necessary in times of crisis.” But the Korean version says it continues to ensure the support and force flow “with” Japan.

Yonhap

I don’t buy the mistranslation causing such a huge false report like this to be published. I think this is probably domestic politics with the Moon administration trying to lift its approval ratings by appearing to stand up to the Americans to stop the Japanese from joining the UNC.