History of the NCO: The Second Korean Conflict

The events that took place on the Korean peninsula, north of the Imjin River in the late sixties went virtually unnoticed by the western world. After the cease-fire was declared in 1953, bringing about the end to the three years of armed conflict which was the Korean War, the American public perceived the hostilities to be over after having paid the price of the lives of more than 30,000 Americans. But after the combat Soldiers returned home, a contingent of US troops remained in Korea to aid the Republic of Korea (ROK) Army in its vital defense against North Korea by the guarding the demilitarized zone (DMZ). The DMZ crossed the entire Korean peninsula and was guarded primarily by the ROK Army with the exception of an 18 mile sector for which the US Army held responsibility. For the next thirteen years, American NCOs posted guards, conducted patrols, and otherwise led Soldiers in the successful defense of the Southern border during a most volatile cold-war era standoff with minimal incident. During this time however, over two thousand miles away, another standoff with a communist threat was escalating in a small Southeast Asian country called Vietnam. Just as the United States was focusing its military might to deter the spread of communism in Southeast Asia, the Republic of Korea sent 2 Divisions and a Marine Brigade to support the war in Vietnam. As the conflict continued to escalate, American troop levels dropped in the two American Divisions stationed in Korea in order to augment the Divisions serving in Vietnam. Meanwhile in Korea, with 2 ROK Divisions out of country and both the 2d Infantry Division and the 7th Infantry Division experiencing shortages in both manpower and materiel, North Korea had an opportunity that it could not refuse to exploit.