Interested in the 8th Army in Korea during 1968? Read more about the contributions of the eighth Army in 1968 in Korea…
During 1968 the 8th Army provided forces to the Republic of Korea and United States combined forces command. Today it continues to provide military personnel to the United Nations command, United States forces in Korea and the US combined forces command.
The scope of operations for the 8th Army in Korea during 1968 included undertaking combat, overseeing combat service support operations and providing extensive combat support. Apart from that it continue to support the Ground Component Command and the Combined Forces Command based on the Korean peninsula.
Scope of 8th Army in Korea Since 1968
The 8th Army in Korea was actually established after a cease-fire was achieved between North Korea and South Korea. The main aim is to counteract any form of aggression from North Korean against the South Korean region, which is known as the Republic of Korea and is an independent and sovereign state. In case the efforts of deterrence fall through, the eighth Army is supposed to support evacuation operations that are noncombatant. Apart from that it has to support transition in hostilities and generate combat power in order to support the divisions of the Allied forces. Whether the forces are attached, assigned or designated within the KTO in each of these instances the EUSA – Eighth United States Army is often authorized to engage in combat operations also.
Challenges Faced by 8th Army in Korea Since 1968
The U.S. Army has the shortest tour on duty when it comes to Korea. These have been drastically reduced since 1968. A regular tour of duty is usually from two to a maximum of three years. Even that was considered very short ranged because they did not assist in developing long-term cohesion between units. The Korean region tour of duty is restricted to 12 months at a maximum. This has been established through a new policy that insists that the personnel be rotated out of the Republic of Korea after serving 12 months.
Unfortunately the region is besieged by two major issues. Not only is the tour of duty time short lived, but there is a high degree of turnover in the regiment based on the assigned responsibilities. In fact in 1950 it used to be 43% and resulted in a negative impact on the Korean conflict in the early days. The turnover percentage has gone up to 125% in present times making for a very dysfunctional unit. Generally cohesion between the units is built up over long-term working relationships, which was established over a length of time. In fact, many military personnel argue that the unit cohesion was much better in the 60s and 70s than it is today in the regiment.
Serving Roles of the Eighth Army in Korea during 1968
The Eighth Army in Korea during 1968 functioned in different capacities, which were categorized in three separate divisions. The first was the organization, resource management, training and maintenance of the Army and other forces. It is categorized under the requirement of ‘Common Items of Support’.
Another role of the Eighth Army in Korea during 1968 was to serve as a combat force for the Army. In this capacity it employed and selected the forces for the Army and the allocated the use of its personnel.
Finally a linkage was developed between the joint war fighting commanders and the service component commanders in order to take part in the Unified Command Plans along with the Unified Armed Action Force. Due to the assignment for the 8th Army in Korea during 1968 it was supposed to be combat ready at all times so that its forces could respond immediately as required.
