United States Forces Korea


The United States Forces Korea is a subordinate unified command of U.S. Indo-Pacific Command. USFK was initially established in 1957, and encompasses U.S. combat-ready fighting forces and components under the ROK/US Combined Forces Command – a supreme command for all of the South Korean and U.S. ground, air, sea, and special operations component commands. Major USFK elements include U.S. Eighth Army, U.S. Air Forces Korea, U.S. Naval Forces Korea, U.S. Marine Forces Korea, and U.S. Special Operations Command Korea.
The mission of USFK is to support the United Nations Command and Combined Forces Command by coordinating and planning among U.S. component commands, and exercise operational control of U.S. forces as directed by United States Indo-Pacific Command. In addition, USFK is responsible for organizing, training and equipping U.S. forces on the Korean Peninsula, as well as executing ancillary functions such as non-combatant evacuation operations.
The U.S. military presence in South Korea is extensive, including at least 24,234 active-duty soldiers, sailors, airmen, and marines as well as nine major bases.

Components

  • Eighth United States Army; Headquarters: Camp Humphreys, South Korea; authorized about 20,000 Soldiers
  • * USAG Daegu
  • ** Camp Henry – Daegu city ; garrison HQ.
  • ** Camp Walker – Daegu; major operations and housing area.
  • ** Camp George – Daegu; housing/support
  • ** Camp Carroll – Waegwan ; logistics and maintenance hub
  • ** Busan Storage / Pier 8 – big logistics and port facility in Busan.
  • ** DLA Disposition Services, Gimcheon – logistics/disposal
  • Commander Naval Forces Korea ; Headquarters: Busan Naval Base, South Korea; authorized about 300 Sailors
  • * Commander Fleet Activities Chinhae – Jinhae/Changwon
  • Marine Forces Korea ; Headquarters: Camp Humphreys, South Korea; authorized about 100 Marines
  • * Camp Mujuk, Posan: Forward & Training Base for both US and ROK Marines.
  • Special Operations Command Korea : Headquarters: Camp Humphreys, South Korea; authorized about 100 operators
  • Seventh Air Force
  • * Headquarters: Osan Air Base, South Korea; authorized about 8,000 Airmen
  • ** Units: HQ 7th Air Force, 51st Fighter Wing, plus ROKAF Operations Command and various tenant units.
  • *Kunsan Air Base, Gunsan
  • **Units: 8th Fighter Wing “Wolf Pack”
  • *K-2 Airfield – USAF/ROKAF airfield on Daegu International Airport, supported by USAG Daegu.
  • United States Space Forces Korea; Headquarters: Osan Air Base, South Korea; authorized about 20 Guardians

    United Nations Command and Combined Forces Command

While USFK is a separate organization from United Nations Command and ROK/US Combined Forces Command, its mission is to support both UNC and CFC by coordinating and planning among US component commands and providing US supporting forces to the CFC. As such, USFK continues to support the ROK-US Mutual Defense Treaty.
In response to the North Korean attack against South Korea on 25 June 1950, the United Nations Security Council established the UNC as a unified command under the US in UNSC Resolution 84 on 7 July 1950. The UNC mission was to assist South Korea to repel the attack and restore international peace and security in Korea. Throughout the war, 53 nations provided support to the UNC; 16 nations provided combat forces and five sent medical and hospital units. After three years of hostilities, the commanders of both sides signed the Armistice Agreement on 27 July 1953.
Hostilities today are also deterred by this bi-national defense team that evolved from the multi-national UNC. Established on 7 November 1978, the ROK/US Combined Forces Command is the warfighting headquarters. Its role is to deter, or defeat if necessary, outside aggression against the ROK.

Commanders, U.S. Forces Korea

History

The following is a partial list of border incidents involving North Korea since the Armistice Agreement of 27 July 1953, ended large scale military action of the Korean War. Most of these incidents took place near either the Korean Demilitarized Zone or the Northern Limit Line. This list includes engagements on land, air and sea but does not include alleged incursions and terrorist incidents that occurred away from the border.
Many of the incidents occurring at sea are due to border disputes. The North claims jurisdiction over a large area south of the disputed western maritime border, the Northern Limit Line in the waters west of the Korean Peninsula. This is a prime fishing area, particularly for crabs, and clashes commonly occur. In addition, the North claims its territorial waters extend for from the coast, rather than the recognized by other countries. According to the 5 January 2011 Korea Herald, since July 1953 North Korea has violated the armistice 221 times, including 26 military attacks.

1950s

  • 16 February 1958: North Korean agents hijack a South Korean airliner to Pyongyang en route from Pusan to Seoul; one American pilot, one American passenger, two West German passengers and 24 other passengers were released in early March, but eight other passengers remained in the North.

    1960s

  • May 1962: Pvt. Larry Allen Abshier abandoned his post in South Korea in May 1962 when he crept away from his base and crossed the DMZ into North Korea. Abshier was the first to defect. Also in May 1962, Cpl. Jerry Parrish crossed the DMZ into North Korea. His reasons for defecting, according to Jenkins' autobiography The Reluctant Communist, were "personal, and didn't elaborate about them much except to say that if he ever went home, his father-in-law would kill him."
  • Aug 1962: James Joseph Dresnok was a Pfc. with a U.S. Army unit along the Korean Demilitarized Zone. Soon after his arrival he found himself facing a court martial for forging signatures on paperwork that gave him permission to leave base and which, ultimately, led to his being AWOL. Unwilling to face punishment, on 15 August 1962, while his fellow soldiers were eating lunch, he ran across a minefield in broad daylight into North Korean territory, where he was quickly apprehended by North Korean soldiers. Dresnok was taken by train to Pyongyang, the North Korean capital, and interrogated.
  • 1964: North Korea creates an underground group: Revolution Party for Reunification. This group is ground down and eliminated by South Korean authorities by 1969
  • Jan 1965: Charles Jenkins, the most notable case, defected to North Korea. In South Korea he was assigned to night patrols. As a result of fears that he would be transferred to combat duty in Vietnam, he grew depressed and anxious, and started drinking alcohol. On the night of 4 January 1965, after reportedly drinking ten beers, he set off on his nightly patrol of the Demilitarized Zone. In the early morning he told his patrol that he was going to investigate a noise. He subsequently crossed into North Korea and surrendered to forces there, in hopes of being sent to Russia and then, through prisoner exchange, eventually returned to America. Shortly thereafter North Korean propaganda declared that a U.S. sergeant had defected, and broadcast statements allegedly made by the defector, reportedly in stilted English. The U.S. Army claimed Jenkins wrote four letters stating his intention to defect ; however, the original letters are reportedly lost. His relatives maintained throughout his absence that he was abducted.
  • 27 April 1965: Two North Korean MiG-17s attack a United States EC-121 Warning Star reconnaissance plane in the waters east of the Korean Peninsula, from the North Korean shore. The aircraft was damaged, but managed to land at Yokota Air Base, Japan.
  • 17 January 1968: In an incident known as the Blue House Raid, a 31-man detachment from the Korean People's Army secretly crossed the DMZ on a mission to kill South Korean President Park Chung Hee on 21 January, nearly succeeding. The incursion was discovered after South Korean civilians confronted the North Koreans and informed South Korean authorities. After entering Seoul disguised as South Korean soldiers, the North Koreans attempt to enter the Blue House. They are confronted by South Korean police and a firefight ensued. The North Koreans fled Seoul and individually attempted to cross the DMZ back to North Korea. Of the original group of 31 North Koreans, 28 were killed, one was captured and two are unaccounted for. Additionally, 68 South Koreans were killed and 66 were wounded, the majority of whom were soldiers and police officers. Three American soldiers were also killed and three were wounded.
  • 23 January 1968: The United States Naval ship the USS Pueblo is boarded and captured, along with its crew, by North Korean forces in the waters east of the Korean Peninsula. The entire crew of 83 is captured, with the exception of one sailor killed in the initial attack on the vessel, and the vessel was taken to a North Korean port. All the captives were released on 23 December of the same year via the Bridge of No Return at the DMZ. The USS Pueblo is still in North Korean possession and is docked in Pyongyang and is on display as a museum ship.
  • 30 October 1968: From 30 October-2 November 120–130 North Korean commandos land on the northeast shore of South Korea, allegedly to establish a base in order to wage a guerrilla war against the South Korean government. A total of 110–113 were killed, seven were captured and 13 escaped. Around 20 South Korean civilians, law enforcement officers and soldiers were killed.
  • March 1969: Six North Korean commandos kill a South Korean police officer near Jumunjin, Gangwon-do. Seven American soldiers are killed in a North Korean attack along the DMZ.
  • April 1969: An EC-121, U.S. reconnaissance plane is shot down east of the North Korean coast, leaving 31 dead.
  • November 1969: Four U.S. soldiers are killed by North Koreans in the Demilitarized Zone.