Blue Dragon Brigade
| 2nd Marine Division | |
|---|---|
| Active | 20 September 1965 - 16 April 1981 (brigade) 16 April 1981 - present (division) |
| Country |
 South Korea
|
| Branch |
 Republic of Korea Marine Corps
|
| Type | Infantry division |
| Nickname(s) | Cheongryong (English: Blue Dragon) |
| Engagements | |
| Decorations |
U.S. Presidential Unit Citation ROK Presidential Unit Citation |
The 2nd Marine Division (Korean: 제2해병사단; Hanja: 第2海兵師團), also known as Blue Dragon (Korean: 청룡; Hanja: 青龍), is an infantry division of the Republic of Korea Marine Corps.
On June 1, 1965, Prime Minister of South Vietnam Nguyễn Cao Kỳ requested military aid from South Korea. To support South Vietnam from communist North Vietnam, Korea State Council agreed to send a Division and its supporting units on July 2, and National Assembly of South Korea made final decision to send troops on August 13.
On August 17, the Republic of Korea Marine Corps attached various battalions, companies, and platoons to the 2nd Marine Regiment to increase its size to a brigade. The Marine Corps originally planned battalion to regiment size unit, but reports from Vietnam said that separating army and Marines was more appropriate to operate.
With President Park Chung-hee in attendance, the 2nd Marine Brigade was formally activated at the ROK Marine Corps training camp at Pohang on September 20, 1965.
The Blue Dragons were initially deployed to Cam Ranh Bay in September 1965, but in December moved to Tuy Hòa to provide security against the NVA 95th Regiment.
In August 1966, the Blue Dragons moved to Chu Lai and was placed under the operational control of the III MAF. Under an arrangement with the USMC, air assets would be provided to the brigade and assigned the same priority for available aircraft as American units. A team from Subunit One, 1st ANGLICO was dispatched and charged with the mission of keeping an air umbrella over the Blue Dragon Brigade in and out of the field. A two-man fire control team was assigned to each ROKMC infantry company at all times.
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Wikipedia