U.S., South Korean Military Officials Team Up for Exercise

ABERDEEN PROVING GROUND, Md. - American and South Korean military leaders held a tabletop exercise to strengthen their combined counter Weapons of Mass Destruction posture, Sept. 25.

The U.S. Army's 20th Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear, Explosives (CBRNE) Command hosted the Republic of Korea Chemical, Biological, Radiological, Nuclear (CBRN) Defense Command for Exercise Liberty Shield.

Leaders from the 20th CBRNE Command welcomed their South Korean counterparts to their headquarters on Aberdeen Proving Ground, Maryland, in Northeast Maryland's science, technology and security corridor.

American Soldiers and U.S. Army civilians from 20th CBRNE Command deploy from 19 bases in 16 states to confront and defeat the world's most dangerous hazards in support of joint, interagency and multinational operations.

The 20th CBRNE Command is home to 75 percent of the active-duty U.S. Army's CBRN specialists and Explosive Ordnance Disposal (EOD) technicians, as well as the 1st Area Medical Laboratory, CBRNE Analytical and Remediation Activity, Weapons of Mass Destruction Teams and Nuclear Disablement Teams (Infrastructure).

Established in 2002, the ROK CBRN Defense Command incorporates personnel from all branches of the South Korean Armed Forces.

The ROK CBRN Defense Command and 20th CBRNE Command routinely train together in the U.S. and South Korea.

From peninsula-wide exercises in South Korea to field training exercises at the National Training Center on Fort Irwin, California, the allied commands have forged an enduring partnership, much like the enduring alliance they support.

U.S. Army Brig. Gen. W Bochat, the commanding general for 20th CBRNE Command, met with her counterpart, ROK Army Brig. Gen. Jaehoon Yoo, the commanding general of the ROK CBRN Defense Command.

Yoo said the relationship between the two highly specialized commands continues to strengthen the counter Weapons of Mass Destruction posture on the Korean Peninsula.

Bochat emphasized the importance of the annual meeting to the ROK-U.S. Alliance and the CBRNE forces that serve in it.

Bochat previously served as the first female chief of staff in the 107-year history of the storied South Korea-based 2nd Infantry Division/ROK-U.S. Combined Division.

"The relationships that I have had personally and professionally both on and off the peninsula cannot be overstated," said Bochat.

The ROK-U.S. Alliance was officially established by the Mutual Defense Treaty that was signed on October 1, 1953.

The ROK-U.S. Alliance has provided the security on the Korean Peninsula and stability in Northeast Asia that enabled the meteoric rise of South Korea from the ashes of war to become one of the world's leading economic and cultural powers.

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