USFK Reinstates Command-Wide Curfew

  • Published
  • United States Forces Korea
OSAN AIR BASE, Republic of Korea --  The commander, U.S. Forces Korea, Gen. James D. Thurman announced today the reinstatement of a command-wide curfew for the next 30 days to ensure the continued mission-readiness of the command and to assess our current operational environment.

The off-installation curfew is in effect from midnight until 5:00 a.m. on Monday through Friday and 3:00 a.m. to 5:00 a.m. on Saturday, Sunday and U.S.-observed holidays including U.S. national holidays, USFK training holidays, and US-observed ROK holidays.

"The overwhelming majority of our personnel make the right choices and conduct themselves in a professional and courteous manner, while enjoying all that the Republic of Korea has to offer," said Thurman. "Given the incidents that have occurred over the last several months, I'm reinstating the curfew to assess current conditions, mission requirements, and potential force protection concerns. Thurman continued, "Personal discipline and accountability are essential elements of my top priorities and contribute directly to mission readiness and the strengthening of the Alliance."

Thurman made the decision to reinstate the curfew after careful consultation with service component commanders and ROK leaders. During this period, he will assess the USFK force protection posture as well other issues, to include but not limited to, operational readiness within USFK.

The curfew applies to all U.S. Armed Forces service members while in Korea, except for military personnel attached to the U.S. Embassy. Military family members, DoD civilians, and DoD-invited contractors/technical representatives, and their respective family members and visiting guests, are encouraged to abide by this policy.

U.S. law enforcement personnel throughout Korea will work closely with their local Korean National Police counterparts for assistance with curfew monitoring and enforcement.

The command rescinded the previous curfew July 2, 2010, which had been in place for nine years. The command's curfew policy provides the flexibility for commanders to re-impose a curfew or other restrictions as deemed appropriate due to operational or other considerations and in accordance with appropriate directives and regulations.

Thurman went on to say, "The ROK-U.S. Alliance is the strongest alliance in the world and we must ensure it remains ready to deter external aggression and if necessary, fight tonight. The men and women that serve our military are the best and brightest America has to offer. They serve with honor and distinction and demand that their fellow service members do the same."

Also today, Lt. Gen. John D. Johnson, commanding general, Eighth Army, directed a training stand down to remind all soldiers that they represent the United States here and to remind them that Army Values are non-negotiable - 24 hours a day, seven days a week. The stand down is part of an on-going process to reinforce Army standards. In May, Eighth Army established a Sexual Assault Prevention Task Force to address the underlying causes of sexual assaults. As a continuance of Eighth Army's efforts to reinforce standards and discipline in its ranks, the training stand down covered all forms of potential misconduct and trained soldiers on the standards the Army expects them to uphold.

For more information read the memorandum here.