North Korean Commandos sneak around on their side of the border on patrol searching for U.S. and South Korean infiltrators.
On January 6, 2014 the Pentagon Press Secretary Rear Admiral John Kirby provided the following readout regarding the Secretary of Defense meeting with Republic of Korea Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se:
“Today, Secretary Hagel hosted the Republic of Korea (ROK) Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se for a meeting in the Pentagon. The secretary reaffirmed the crucial role of the U.S.-ROK Alliance, which serves as a linchpin for peace and stability in the Asia-Pacific region. The secretary and the minister reaffirmed that both sides must continue to make progress to develop and acquire critical military capabilities necessary to maintain and strengthen our combined defense posture.
The two discussed the importance of maintaining a robust combined defense of the Korean Peninsula as a strong deterrent against provocations from North Korea. Secretary Hagel emphasized the importance of the U.S.-ROK Alliance, and confirmed the solid United States commitment to the defense of the ROK (source: http://www.defense.gov/releases/release.aspx?releaseid=16464).
With 28,500 American soldiers, sailors, airmen, and Marines stationed in South Korea, U.S. forces in South Korea are a forward presence in the region and a key manifestation of the U.S. government’s re-balance toward the Asia-Pacific.
They face an over whelming military force.
The annual report of North Korea’s military capabilities by the U.S. Department of Defense released in early 2013, identified the “North Korean Army’s strength at 950,000 personnel, 4,100 tanks, 2,100 armored vehicles, 8,500 artillery guns, and 5,100 multiple launch rocket systems.” According to the unclassified report, “North Korea’s large, forward-positioned military can initiate an attack against the ROK ( and the U.S. forces station there) with little or no warning, even though it suffers from resource shortages and aging equipment” (source: http://www.defense.gov/pubs/ReporttoCongressonMilitaryandSecurityDevelopmentsInvolvingtheDPRK.pdf).
Underscoring the seriousness of the situation the overwhelming majority of active military ground forces in North Korea are deployed in three echelons — a forward operational echelon of four infantry corps; supported by a second operational echelon of two mechanized corps, the armor corps, and an artillery corps; and a strategic reserve of the two remaining mechanized corps and the other artillery corps, according to the Strategic Studies Institute which has since removed that information from its website for whatever reason (http://strategicstudiesinstitute.army.mil/pubs/parameters/03spring/hodge.pdf).
These forces include the 806th and 815th Mechanized Corps and the 820th Armored Corps.
These forces are garrisoned along major north-south lines of communication that provide rapid, easy access to avenues of approach into South Korea. The KPA has positioned massive numbers of artillery pieces including some fakes, especially its longer-range systems, close to the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) that separates the two Koreas.
In the event of war these forces will cut a path straight to South Korea’s capitol of Seoul – A megacity with a population of more than 10 million inhabitants, it is the largest city proper in the developed world (location: 37°33′59.53″N 126°58′40.69″E).
Seoul, South Korea is located just 35 miles from the DMZ (or Demilitarize Zone) – source: http://www.sfgate.com/travel/article/SEOUL-lives-life-on-the-edge-Just-35-miles-from-2557590.php
I did a special report in 2012 which indicated that from a purely military defense standpoint the US forces in Korea are “sitting ducks”. At the time I shared this article with the Pentagon and White House expressing concern for U.S forces (see article: U.S. Forces in Korea lack troops, force structure, missile defense and equipment http://www.examiner.com/article/u-s-forces-korea-lack-troops-force-structure-missile-defense-and-equipment).