Text Fwd: Top US commander stresses cultural ties with S. Korea

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'Lt. Gen. John D. Johnson, Chief of 8th U.S. Army'




Korea Times

Top US commander stresses cultural ties with S. Korea
By Jung Sung-ki




12-19-2010

A top American commander in Seoul said he is confident in the U.S.-ROK ability to thwart any further North Korean provocation.

“We continue to train the ROK military and the ROK military conducts its own training in order to maintain its skills and in order to do the job to defend their own country,” Lt. Gen. John D. Johnson, commanding general of the 8th U.S. Army, said. “I’m absolutely confident that we’re prepared for whatever might come.”

South Korean marines plan to hold a maritime live-fire exercise near Yeonpyeong Island Monday or Tuesday in a show of strength against North Korean provocations. Representatives from the United Nations Command will take part as observers. North Korea has threatened to retaliate against the planned drill.

Johnson pledged efforts to boost cultural ties between the United States and South Korea in order to further strengthen the alliance of the two nations.

He was attending the annual Korea-American Friendship Holiday Concert at the Seoul Performing Arts Center.

The concert included performances by the 8th Army Band and the Prima Donna Ensemble, which features 90 of South Korea’s most talented female vocalists. More than 2,000 people, including top U.S. and South Korean generals, attended the concert.

“It’s a great opportunity during holidays to get all friends together and enjoy music,” Johnson told The Korea Times. “Music is an international language every time. Even if American companies here don’t speak perfect ‘hangeul,’ and if the Koreans come here today don’t speak that much English, they can enjoy the music and enjoy the holidays.”

When he previously served as deputy commanding general for Operations, Multi-National Corps-Iraq, band performances were used as a tool for building closer ties with Iraqi troops and civilians, he recalled.

Johnson assumed command of the 8th Army on Nov. 9 after serving as deputy commanding general of I Corps at Fort Lewis in Washington. He also serves as chief of staff for U.S. Forces Korea.

Between 2006 and 2007, Johnson served as assistant division commander for maneuvers for the 2nd Infantry Division stationed north of Seoul.

“There are a lot of ways to strengthen our alliance,” the three-star general said. “It’s already the strongest in the world. It’s envied by other countries as they see the way we operate together and the way we bond together.”

“The most recent events here illustrate even more so how important it is and for us to be united together in this alliance,” the commander said, apparently referring to a series of North Korean attacks on South Koreans.

North Korea is blamed for having torpedoed a South Korean warship near the disputed sea border in the West Sea in March. On Nov. 23, the North fired nearly 200 artillery shells onto Yeonpyeong Island near the Northern Limit Line (NLL), killing two marines and two civilians.