U.S. Troops To Pull Out Of Seoul

The Wsahington Post ^ | January 18, 2004 | NA

[neverdem]

Reuters

SEOUL, Jan. 17 -- South Korea and the United States have agreed to pull out all American troops from Seoul as part of a global realignment plan for U.S. forces, South Korea's Defense Ministry announced Saturday.

About 7,000 U.S. soldiers and their families will be moved to an expanded facility about 45 miles south of Seoul. The move is scheduled to be completed by 2006.

The decision to move U.S. troops south, away from the border with North Korea, was made because of a request by the United States and after a meeting between the two sides in Hawaii, a ministry spokesman said.

The U.S. military presence in the center of the South Korean capital over the past 50 years has been a constant source of anti-U.S. sentiment in the country.

The Defense Ministry did not disclose details of the plan, which came a day after South Korean President Roh Moo Hyun named his foreign policy adviser, Ban Ki Moon, as foreign minister.

Ban's predecessor, criticized by some officials as being too pro-American, quit on Thursday in a dispute that pitted pro-U.S. ministry officials against presidential aides over South Korea's policy toward the United States and North Korea.

The U.S. military has said the move out of Seoul will not diminish its strength in South Korea. Officials note they plan to spend $11 billion over the next four years to modernize forces.

The United States keeps 37,000 troops in South Korea -- a legacy of the Korean War, which ended in an uneasy armistice, not a peace treaty.

The war pitted South Korea and a U.S.-led force from the United Nations against North Korea, which was backed by Chinese ground troops and Soviet aid.

The Korea Times newspaper said about 50 U.S. soldiers would remain in Seoul at a liaison office adjacent to South Korea's Defense Ministry building.

The land occupied by the U.S. forces would be returned to the Seoul metropolitan government, it said.

"We will make efforts to come up with steps in order for our people not to feel uneasy," the assistant defense minister, Cha Young Koo, said on YTN television news.

Separately, North Korea accused South Korea on Saturday of illegally deploying artillery inside the Demilitarized Zone, the buffer area created at the end of the war to keep opposing armies apart. Under a cease-fire accord, only rifles and other small arms are allowed inside the DMZ, the Associated Press reported.

"The South Korean military authorities should stop acting rashly, clearly mindful of the grave consequences to be entailed by such military provocations," the North's official KCNA news agency said.

The report provided no details of the weapons, and a spokesman for the South Korean Defense Ministry rejected the accusation as untrue.

[neverdem]

Thanks for the pics and links. When someone uses the term "base bleed" in describing artillery projectiles does that always imply rocket assisted projectils?

[archy]

Thanks for the pics and links. When someone uses the term "base bleed" in describing artillery projectiles does that always imply rocket assisted projectils?

No. Base Bleed or *base burn* is a little different arrangement than RAP, rocket assisted projectiles, as RAP generally results in a smaller payload for the projectile.

I'll try to find you some comparison illustrations. Interestingly, it's possible to combine the two technologies as a hybrid design.

[neverdem]

That hybrid claims 110% increase in range. WOW

I wonder when the motors are timed to start. My guess is when the rounds clear the muzzle of the biggest calibers.

[neverdem]

Some links on this thread you might enjoy.

[Cannoneer No. 4]

4P3?
What ever happened to FourPapaOne?
Which one was on the east side of the road across from the Manchus after you crossed the bridge over the Imjin?

[damian85]

its up to you to find the map and do the calculations. remember,i have seen the maps and i know where the bad guys are. i don't really care about reputations. in order for those guns to range Seoul they are going to have to come alot closer. do you think we don't know what kind of guns they have? do you think we haven't ranged them and set firing data for each position? don't you think we know the capabilities of the weapon system they're using? are you naive enough to believe that they have something we don't know about? i've sat through the briefings and i know for a fact that NK guns cannot reach Seoul. anything after that i won't say. remember that just because it's on the internet doesn't make it truth. ask someone thats been there, someone that has stood a watch someone that knows what they're talking about and stop quoting the internet. good day gentlemen.

[neverdem]

I wish you a good morning Damian. May I ask you a second time, when did you serve in Korea? Does the "85" in your name refer to the year of your birth or when you served there?

I keep a very cynical mind when using the Internet, but when I find a preponderance of websites describing extended ranges, then it must be considered in light of advances in propellants and BB/RAP technology, especially when using dumb munitions for bombardment of an area.

[damian85]

i served in korea from may 99 to may 00. i then pcs'd to germany after spending some well deserved time in australia. the 85 in my name came from being the 85th damian in hotmail. i've kept it since then and thats who i am on the internet. i was born in 79. as far as technology goes you have to remember there exists a difference between what is true and what the US government will admit. what would happen if everybody in the world could get ranges and firing data as easily on the internet as you have? also we have to admit to ourselves that our government isn't different from other governments of the world. if you go to panmujon right now you'll see and hear the propaganda that NK has been spilling out for years. they are so scared of th US war machine that they are trying to entice defectors to come across. whats to say they haven't embellished their reports of equipment inventory or technology? wouldn't you if there was a big dog on the other side of the fence? anyway! don't believe what you see on the internet because i'm telling you it's not true. guess you're just gonna have to trust me on this one. i wish i could tell you everything cause then it would all make since and there wouldn't be an argument but secrets are secret for a reason. oh! and if you have any more questions please feel free to ask. i don't know who i last responded to but i kinda snapped at him or her. for that i apologize. shouldn't mix my love of the artillery with typing.

[damian85]

i have a question. what is the total amount of money that leaves the US in a year? i'm talking about money for land we use, foreign aid etc. i have neither the time or the patience to find out, i don't even know where to start looking. any ideas?

[Uncle Meat]

I don't know much of 4P1.My unit was assigned to 4P3 until it was turned over to the ROK army.This was back in '92.It was close enough to the DMZ,that you could see the N.Korean flag and the guard towers from the motorpool.

[RedlegCPT]

As far as I can remember 4P1 was across from Warrior Base. I passed it many time coming back from south of the Im Jim to return to Camp Bonifas in my other life in the Army (as an 11B at the JSA).

[metoooo]

why not move the 7000 back to the states...