[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Wanggeon Ship to Begin Deployment Activities from 5:30 PM Today

[Asia Economy Reporter Yang Nak-gyu] As the South Korean government decided to dispatch troops to the Strait of Hormuz, attention is focused on the 31st Cheonghae Unit warship Wang Geon.

According to the military on the 21st, the 30th Cheonghae Unit warship Gang Gam-chan (DDH-II, 4,400-ton class) is currently carrying out its mission, and from 17:30 today, the 31st unit warship Wang Geon (4,400-ton class) will take over the mission. Starting next month, the Wang Geon is highly likely to change its operational area from the Gulf of Aden to the Strait of Hormuz.

The Cheonghae Unit is organized with one destroyer of 4,400 tons or more (equipped with one Lynx helicopter and up to three high-speed boats) and approximately 320 personnel.

The 31st Cheonghae Unit warship Wang Geon is equipped with Harpoon anti-ship missiles and SM-Ⅱ surface-to-air missiles. It also carries the Haeseong ship-to-ship cruise missile. The Haeseong-2 cruise missile is a supersonic version of the Haeseong-1 ship-to-ship missile. Haeseong-2 has a range of over 500 km. Among Korean destroyers (DDH II, 4,400-ton class), the Wang Geon was the first to be equipped with Haeseong-2, and it is also mounted on Aegis destroyers such as the Sejong the Great (DDG, 7,600-ton class). It is known that about 10 Haeseong-2 missiles are loaded on the Wang Geon, and about 30 on the Sejong the Great.

The anti-submarine guided weapon "Hong Sang-eo" (Red Shark) installed on the Wang Geon is a long-range anti-submarine guided weapon. The Hong Sang-eo is launched like a missile from the vertical launch system on the Wang Geon, and near the enemy submarine at sea, it drops a torpedo called Cheong Sang-eo (Blue Shark) into the water. The deployed Cheong Sang-eo attacks the enemy submarine. The Cheong Sang-eo can penetrate steel plates up to 1.5 meters thick.

The dispatched troops are also impressive. The Wang Geon heading to the Gulf of Aden operates a boarding and search team composed of special forces (UDT) soldiers and a maritime operation helicopter (LYNX). The Gang Gam-chan, which will hand over the mission, has Major Yang Ki-jin (Korea Naval Academy Class 58), the first female officer in the Cheonghae Unit dispatch, serving as the aviation squadron commander.

The Cheonghae Unit was established on March 3, 2009, to ensure the safety of vessels in the Gulf of Aden. So far, it has supported safe navigation for over 22,400 vessels and conducted more than 20 anti-piracy operations. It has successfully carried out operations such as the Gulf of Aden Dawn Operation, the rescue of crew members of the Hanjin Tianjin (2011), the rescue and escort of the Gemini crew (2012), the evacuation of Korean nationals from Libya (2011 and 2014) and Yemen (2015), and the escort operation of kidnapped nationals in the Ghana waters (2018).

Japan also decided on December 27 last year, at a cabinet meeting presided over by Prime Minister Shinzo Abe, to dispatch one Maritime Self-Defense Force escort ship and one P-3C patrol aircraft (with about 260 personnel) to the Middle East region.

The Japanese dispatched unit is the helicopter-carrying escort ship Takanami (full load displacement 6,300 tons). It is scheduled to depart early next month. One of the two P-3Cs currently operating from Djibouti in East Africa for anti-piracy missions will be immediately assigned to the new mission starting this month. The main gun of the Takanami is the Italian Oto Melara 127mm naval gun. It is armed with two 20mm CIWS (Close-In Weapon System) made by Raytheon, ESSM surface-to-air missiles (an improved version of the Sea Sparrow), anti-submarine attack rockets (ASROC) with 32-cell Mk41 vertical launch system (VLS), eight ship-to-ship missiles, and two triple 324mm torpedo tubes. The ship is 151 meters long and has a crew of 176.

The Self-Defense Force escort ship and P-3C are assigned to international waters including the exclusive economic zones of coastal countries along the Gulf of Oman, the northern Arabian Sea, and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait off Yemen, which connect to the Strait of Hormuz.

Meanwhile, the South Korean military has dispatched troops to four countries. About 280 personnel of the UN peacekeeping force Dongmyeong Unit are stationed in Tyre, southern Lebanon. The Dongmyeong Unit conducts independent and joint surveillance operations to block armed groups and jointly operates checkpoints with other dispatched countries. On the 9th of last month, the 23rd Dongmyeong Unit departed for rotation. About 150 personnel of the Ark Unit were dispatched to the United Arab Emirates (UAE), a country near Iraq. The Ark Unit supports training for the UAE special forces and conducts joint exercises with them.

In South Sudan, which is experiencing civil war, there are about 280 personnel of the Hanbit Unit. This unit has been performing UN peacekeeping operations (PKO). In the Gulf of Aden waters off Somalia in Africa, which borders the Middle East, about 300 personnel of the Cheonghae Unit are deployed. The Cheonghae Unit secures maritime safety in the Gulf of Aden, through which about 30% of South Korea's total cargo volume passes. Following the approval of four dispatch extension agreements last month, the deployment period for these units has been extended by one year, allowing them to remain overseas until December 31, 2020.

The Cheonghae Unit, to which the Wang Geon belongs, was established on March 3, 2009, to ensure the safety of vessels in the Gulf of Aden. So far, it has supported safe navigation for over 22,400 vessels and conducted more than 20 anti-piracy operations. It has successfully carried out operations such as the Gulf of Aden Dawn Operation, the rescue of crew members of the Hanjin Tianjin (2011), the rescue and escort of the Gemini crew (2012), the evacuation of Korean nationals from Libya (2011 and 2014) and Yemen (2015), and the escort operation of kidnapped nationals in the Ghana waters (2018).

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.