Sure is!

[url] http://www.un.org/ [/url]

Doesn't the future look lovely?

[IMG]http://www.contrabandent.com/pez//contrib/aahmed/sad.gif[/IMG]

It sure does! I just can't wait till the day I go walking around in my hometown and find some U.N. soldier taking a whiz on some broken down building, like this one is!  [:D]

Yes. That is a ROK army soldier who is part of the UN security force at the Joint Security Area in Panmunjon, which is in Korea, but technically is not in any country. It is in exact center of the DMZ. Their are also American guards. They are probably some of the toughest and best trained (for their limited mission) troops in the theater.

In this case, the American and Korean forces are still in Korea as part of the UN mission started in 1950. The troops are all under the command of the UN, but the commander for the theater is an American 4-star, who also commands the United States Forces, Korea, and the 8th US Army. Panmunjon is a "truce village" where there are ongoing talks about the war. The Korean War never ended, see, there was just a cease fire, which occasionally gets broken. Representatives of the various countries involved (the US, China, North Korea and South Korea, all meet at Panmunjon to for ongoing "talks" about the cease fire.

Panmunjon is probably one of the most tense places on earth. There is an actual yellow line (the Military Demarcation Line) painted down the center of the village. Armed NKs are on one side, and Americans and ROKs (like the guy in the photo) are on the other, in a perpetual high-noon standoff, waiting for gunfire to break out, which it periodically does. This ROK isn't "taking a whiz," he is using the side of a building for cover and waiting for a chance to bag him a North Korean. I personally wish him, and his American buddies good luck with their endeavor.

As far as the UN goes, the UN gets lip service, only, and has no direct control over anyone's troops , although the mission in Korea is technically a UN mission.

I know your knocking the U.N. not the R.O.K. soldier. The guy deserves some respect. He's doing his duty for his country. More than I can say for a lot of American boys his age.

Boy, Korea -- Rawanda--Somalia all of these UN endeavors seem to work out sooooooo well, instead of a lasting peace you end up in neverending standoff or total chaos they seem to be becoming the new Ministry of Love in that contrary to thier stated goal they only seem to perpetuate war.
One of My buddies got posted to Korea and did DMZ service told me they used the ROK troops to sit on the floor buffer so as to get a better shine on the barracks floor. And that the rich Koreans buy thier way out of military service becuase they consider it demeaning. Also the ROK's are not paid very well for thier compulsory service so the level of professionalisim is low in the SK Army.

I've been there and seen them. They are good soldiers probably the best in the far east. Far superior to the North Korean slave soldiers. Yes they are conscripted but they understand that the survival of their way of life is under constant threat. I venture to say we have far more slackers and shitbirds in our armed forces than the R.O.K. does in theirs. Probably because they don't put up with any B.S. from the troops.

Well said.  I've been there back in the early 80's and met several ROK soldiers.  Very friendly and very professional.

I'd take 2 ROKs over 10 KATUSAs anyday!

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