Eighth United States Army (EUSA)
Eighth U.S. Army [EUSA] provides forces to the commander in chief of United Nations Command; United States Forces, Korea; and Republic of Korea/U.S. Combined Forces Command. It undertakes combat, combat support and combat service support operations as directed, and also supports the Combined Forces Command and Ground Component Command on the Korean peninsula.
Eighth United States Army (EUSA) supports deterrence of NK aggression against the Republic of Korea (ROK). Should deterrence fail, EUSA supports Non-combatant Evacuation Operations (NEO), transitions to hostilities, generates combat power to support CINC / UNC / CFC's campaign, and provides combat support and combat service support to assigned, attached, and other designated forces within the KTO. On order, conducts combat operations.
Nowhere in the US Army today are rotation times shorter than in Korea. Normal US military tours of duty range from two to three years, and some military experts feel that even this time interval is inadequate to develop long-term unit cohesion. Current policy requires that virtually all personnel rotate out of Korea after 12 months. Worse, positional turnover-the turnover in terms of assigned responsibilities-approaches 125 percent annually. Ironically, annual turnover among Japan-based personnel in 1950 was 43 percent - a "high" rate blamed for the unit's poor showing in the first days of the Korean conflict. Given that unit cohesion is largely a function of personnel working together over time, the much-maligned divisions stationed in Japan in 1950 arguably retained greater cohesion than 2ID does almost 50 years later.
On 16 March 1998 The Eighth U.S. Army became the newest service component command for the commander in chief UNC/CFC/USFK. The new Army Service Component Command -- placed within the Ground Component Command -- joined the Air Force, Navy, Special Operations, and Marine Corps Component Commands to give the CINC UNC/CFC/USFK more options and capabilities during armistice and all phases of a campaign plan. As the Army war fighting headquarters for the Korean peninsula, ASCC presents the CINC a set of relevant and complementary capabilities. This presentation will allow the CINC to consider all options available and to tailor campaign plans to best meet the military objective of the mission.
The mission of the new ASCC is three-fold. First, it is the Army's supporting force. In this capacity, the ASCC organizes, equips, trains, maintains, and supports the Army and other forces under the "Common Items of Support" requirement. Secondly, it serves as an Army combat force. In this role, the ASCC employs Army forces, selects forces and advises on the use of the Army. Thirdly, the service component commander establishes linkage to the joint war fighting commander and takes specified part in the Unified Armed Action Force and the Unified Command Plans. In Korea, as part of the CFC coalition, ASCC has been assigned combat functions that require immediate readiness. Conditions demand that in-place forces are ready to respond and perform at a moment's notice. Should conditions demand the deployment or employment of U.S. Army forces, the CINC will do so through the Army component commander in Korea.
The Army service component serves as the senior Army echelon in a theater and is the Army service component command of a unified command. It includes the service component commander and all Army personnel, organizations, units, and installations that have been assigned to the unified command.
The Korean Augmentation to the United States Army (KATUSA) Soldier Program was initiated in July 1950 by an informal agreement between the Honorable Syngman Rhee, President of the Republic of Korea, and General of the Army Douglas MacArthur, Commander in Chief, United Nations Command. The concept of this program originally was to augment the United States (U.S.)-fighting forces just after the outbreak of the Korean War. After the armistice, KATUSA soldiers remained with U.S. units to receive training that was not readily available in the ROK Army and to enhance the U.S. Army's mission capability. The KATUSA Soldier Program has been a continuous one since 1950 with only periodic strength adjustments dictated by requirements. Originally, the KATUSA soldiers were returned to the ROKA after serving with the U.S. Army. Since 1968, however, KATUSA soldiers remain with the U.S. Army until their service commitments are completed. The objective of the KATUSA Soldier Program is to augment U.S. forces with ROK Army soldiers in order to increase the ROK/U.S. combined defense capability on the Korean peninsula. The KATUSA Soldier Program is significant not only because of the military manpower and monetary savings that it provides to the U.S. Army, but also because it represents ROK/U.S. cooperation and commitment to deter war. The KATUSA Soldier Program is also symbolic of ROK/U.S. friendship and mutual support.
