About The Korean Military (대한민국 국군)

One thing that stands out when you come to Korea is that you will often see men with military clothes walking around, especially if you are at a Korail Station. That is because, in Korea, all men must serve in the Republic Of Korea Military (대한민국 욱군) for at least 21 months. From the age of 18 to 30 all Korean men must serve in the military whether it be in the Army or Marine for 21 months, Navy for 23 months, or AirForce for 24 months. After completing their mandatory enlistment, men are also obligated to attend Reserve Forces Training a few days each year for 4 years. As well as Army, Marine, Navy, AirForce, Military Police, and Civil Defense Corps, Korea also has a military branch called KATUSA (Korean Augmentation To the United States Army.) KATUSA soldiers have volunteered to serve alongside the American Army in Korea as their mandatory enlistment. These volunteers have a high level of English Speaking skill, they personally work with US soldiers who are stationed in Korea. When serving in the Army, men are only allowed to leave their base camp on the weekend or through the allowance of their commanding officer. If you happen to be walking in Seoul around Gyeongbokgung palace or any of the embassies, you may see many young men in Police uniforms. They are most likely not real police officers. They are soldiers doing their Military Service as a Civil Servant.

Random Facts:

- You can distinguish soldiers by the color of their name badges or uniform. Army will have a Green name badge, Marine will have a Red name badge and beige colored boots, AirForce will have a Blue name badge, and someone in the Navy will most likely be wearing a Navy Uniform.

- A majority of Navy Soldiers do their service at Sea and a small amount serve in a Base Camp.

- Marines are most likely to serve some time on Yeonpyeong Island (연평도) and many Marines are stationed in Pohang.

- The indication of how long a Solider has left to serve is a small patch on their uniform with dark stripes. If there are 4 stripes on their patch, it means there are nearing the end of their service. If there is 1, then they have just begun.

- When soldiers finally complete their military service, they usually celebrate with their fellow soldiers and customize their bag or hat with pins to show their accomplishments.

(The purpose of this article was to spread general knowledge and to share some interesting facts about the Korean Military. A majority of this information was taken from actual Soldiers; Army, Marine, Navy, & Airforce.)

#korea #koreamilitary #ROKA #koreanarmy #대한민국국군 #koreanmilitaryservice #army #navy #marine #airforce