KATUSA

KATUSA Training Academy, Camp Jackson, Korea

KATUSA soldier assigned to 2nd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment, 1st Heavy Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division wearing the U.S. Army's battle dress uniform, the Army Combat Uniform

KATUSA training academy

KATUSA (Korean: 카투사) stands for Korean Augmentation To the United States Army.^[1] Qualified Korean draftees who demonstrate a high level of English fluency and aptitude via a standardized written exam (usually the TOEIC) may apply for a KATUSA slot. Conscripts with qualifying test scores are selected on a random basis via lottery by the Korean government. Once selected, KATUSAs must complete six-weeks of ROK Army basic training. A brief orientation and OJT is conducted by the U.S. Army before they begin their full-time duty with a United States Army unit garrisoned in Korea for the duration of their military service.

The number of candidates vying for an available opening is extremely high because many soldiers believe that the U.S. Army is less abusive and more professional in its training and treatment of soldiers compared with the ROK Army, and that junior enlisted personnel receive better treatment, have more educational opportunities (especially with regards to learning English), experience a higher standard of living, and have an overall better quality of life than their ROK counterparts. In 2012, roughly 3,400 KATUSA soldiers served with 25,000 United States Forces Korea (USFK), versus 4,800 in 2005 and 11,000 in 1968.^[2] As the number of U.S. Soldiers in South Korea decreases, the number of KATUSA soldiers is decreasing as well. The ratio of KATUSA soldiers to U.S soldiers is roughly 1:10.

Purpose

The KATUSA program provides the U.S. military with Korean-speaking soldiers, allowing greater military functionality and maneuverability throughout the Korean peninsula. KATUSA soldiers are assigned to each Eighth United States Army units with their Military Occupational Specialty like the United States Army soldiers and do the part of their MOS. On top of that KATUSA soldiers serve as translators between the local populace and the U.S. Army, and help the U.S. maneuver in unfamiliar terrain. Informally, they help U.S. soldiers new to the peninsula understand Korean customs and a bit of the language. It saves the U.S. money and manpower, and symbolizes the two nations' friendship and mutual support. ^[3]

KATUSA Code of Conduct

^[4]

Selection process

To become a KATUSA, eligible Korean draftees who've demonstrated a minimum level of English-language proficiency by achieving minimum passing scores on standardized tests of English (TOEFL and TEPS), may apply through the Military Manpower Administration(MMA), upon which their name is entered into a lottery system. Typically, the minimum scores for getting into the lottery are 780 and over for TOEIC and 690 and over for TEPS. As the selection process is completely random, all eligible candidates have an equal chance of winning. Applicants may only apply once.

U.S. Air Force

While many Republic of Korea Air Force members in Korea work alongside U.S. Air Force members, there is no KATUSA program with the USAF counterpart; ROKAF retains their own unit and command structure separate from their USAF coworkers.

Criticism

One criticism of the KATUSA program arises from the difference in promotion systems; the ROK Army promotes its enlistees on a quota/time basis and not through the merit system. A KATUSA soldier may be senior in rank to an American counterpart with significantly more field experience. However, this criticism is usually rebutted by the counter-argument from the United States Forces Korea that such promotion of KATUSA soldiers is sufficiently warranted given the fact that KATUSA soldiers usually possess at least two years of college experience, which would translate to an advanced enlisted rank for US soldiers.

Another criticism arising from the Korean Army side is based on the fact that most of the KATUSA soldiers are from the top universities in Korea. For the ROKA, this means that they are losing intelligent soldiers to the US Army. To minimize this, the selection process now randomly picks soldiers from the pool of applicants, instead of hiring the most qualified soldiers.

Some of the recent criticisms from the South Korean side include alleged forced-recruitment during the 1950-53 Korean War, when the 7th Infantry Division commandeered reinforcements for the landing at Incheon. These so-called "First KATUSA soldiers" included 313 men from Busan. (The South Korean side claims they were taken from refugee camps, but whether they volunteered or were coerced remains a matter of dispute.)

See also

• KATCOM, a similar system operating in the 1st Commonwealth Division.

References

Further reading

• Appleman, Roy. South to the Naktong, North to the Yalu: June–November, 1950 (1961).
• Blair, Clay. The Forgotten War: America in Korea, 1950-1953 (1987).
• Hermes, Walter. Truce Tent and Fighting Front, United States Army in the Korean War (1966).
• Mossman, Billy. Ebb and Flow: November 1950-July 1951 United States Army in the Korean War (1990).
• Skaggs, D.C. The KATUSA Experiment: The Integration of Korean Nationals into the U.S. Army, 1950-1965 (1974).
• Stanton, Shelby. American’s Tenth Legion, X Corps in Korea, 1950 (1989).
• The Korean War: An Encyclopedia, edited by Stanley Sandler and published by Garland Publishing, Inc.

External links

• KATUSA on FaceBook