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The Republic of Korea Army ('''ROK Army''', '''ROKA''', (70% mountainous) as well as the heavy North Korean presence, with its 1 million strong army, two-thirds of which is permanently garrisoned in the frontline near the DMZ . OVERVIEW The current administration has initiated a program of self-defense, whereby South Korea would be able to fully counter the North Korean threat with purely domestic means within the next two decades. The ROK Army was formerly organized into 3 armies: the First Army (FROKA), Second Army (SROKA), and Third Army (TROKA), each with its own head quarters, corps, and divisions. The Third Army was responsible for the defense of the capital as well as the western section of the DMZ. The First Army was responsible for the defense of the eastern section of the DMZ whereas the SROKA formed the rearguard. Under a restructuring plan aimed at reducing redundancy, the First and Third Armies have been incorporated into the newly formed Ground Operations Command (GOC), whereas the Second ROK Army has been converted into the Rear Operations Command (ROC). The army consists of 560,000 troops, 4,975 Tanks/Armored Vehicles, 5,598 battlefield Artillery Systems (Includes Tracked, Wheeled and Towed Systems) and 13,000 Infantry Support Systems. Equipment of the ROK Army include the older M47, M48 as well as the more recent K1 and K1A1 , which bear a 120 mm smoothbore gun and are of local manufacture. Main Battle Tank .]] The future replacement for the K1 MBT has been baptized the K2 Black Panther (흑표/黑豹; Heukpyo), which will be fitted with a 1500 hp MTU-based engine, 55-caliber 120 mm main gun with autoloader, which has been reportedly rumored to be able to penetrate through the amount of armor equivalent to that of American M1A2 . The new tank will also feature RADAR equipment as well as all-bearing LASER detection and defense systems, anti-missile grenade launcher, and heavy Reactive Armor and sensor package comparable to the American M1A2 and French Leclerc . In addition South Korea already manufactures the indigenous K-9 Howitzer , which have been exported to Turkey, as well as the K200 series KIFV's which saw action in UN peacekeeping operations( PKO ) as part of the Malaysian peacekeeping forces. A variation of the K200, the KAFV's can be retrofitted to bear a 90 mm barrel or 40 mm grenade turret or M230-1 Chain gun Turret or MK-30 Chaingun Turret. A replacement for K200 series IFVs are currently being tested, designated as XK21 KNIFV (Korea Next generation Infantry Fighting Vehicle), which will have various capabilities for both land and naval warfare. The ROK Army also fields the mobile K-SAM "Pegasus"(천마/天馬; Cheonma), fitted with 8 missiles that fly at maximum speeds of mach 2.6, and the K-30 "Biho" series, which features a 30 mm twin gun system for anti-aerial fire support. Besides having vehicles and equipment of their own design as well as American models, the ROK Army also has several Russian-built AFVs, including BMP-3 IFVs and T-80U MBTs, given by the Russian government to pay off the financial debt owed to South Korea. Other notable foreign equipment in service with the ROK Army includes the Mistral MANPADS . A new infantry rifle, named KNR or Korean New Rifle , has recently been unveiled. The overall concept of this weapon is similar to the American OICW and Germany G36 or XM8 . It is slated for distribution around 2010. HISTORY The 1st of every October is celebrated in South Korea as the Armed Forces Day. It commemorates the same date during the Korean War when units of the ROK Army first crossed the 38th Parallel, thus leading the UN Coalition north into communist territory for the first time. ORDER OF BATTLE
MILITARY RANKS Officer ranks can be learned fairly easily if one sees the pattern. "So" equals small; "Jung" equals medium; "Dae" equals large. "Jun" equals very small (used for 1 star general). Each of these is coupled with "wi" equals company grade, "ryung" equals field grade, and "jang" equals general. This system is due to the Hanja or Sino-Korean origin of the names. Commissioned Officers Warrant Officers Non-Commissioned Officers Enlisted ¹: No one held the rank of ''Won-su'' in the history of the ROK Armed Forces yet. &2: The ''Jun-wi'' (Warrent Officer)'s insignia is in gold color while the ones of Second Lieutenant and higher are in silver color. EXTERNAL LINKS
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