2nd INFANTRY DIVISION'S HISTORY ON THE KOREAN "DMZ" Page 1

The Cold War Era

On 1 July 1965, the division's colors returned to the Republic of Korea. The Soldiers of the 1st Cavalry Division removed their First Team Division patches and became 2nd Infantry Division Warriors. The 2nd Division was assigned to guard portions of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), and help deter war on the peninsula. North Korean forces were engaging in increasing border incursions and infiltration attempts and the 2nd Infantry Division was called upon to help halt these attacks. On November 2, 1966, soldiers of the 1st Battalion, 23rd Infantry Regiment were killed in an ambush by North Korean forces. In 1967 enemy attacks in the DMZ increased, as a result, 16 American soldiers were killed that year.
In 1968 North Koreans continued to probe across the DMZ, and in 1969, while on patrol, 4 soldiers of 3rd Battalion, 23rd Infantry were killed, but by 1970 the North had decided that their efforts against the Division weren't worth the cost and organized attacks stopped that year. By March 1971 Republic of Korea forces had assumed the responsibility for the defense of all but 500 yards of the DMZ, allowing the 2nd Infantry Division to maintain combat readiness in case of any eventuality.
On 18 August 1976, CPT Arthur G. Bonifas and 1LT Mark T Barrett, of the United Nations Joint Security Force, were attacked and killed by North Korean border guards during a routine tree-trimming operation within the Joint Security Area.
Three days later on 21 August 1976, the United Nations Command responded with Operation Paul Bunyan. The 2nd Infantry Division assembled Task Force Brady, named after the Division Commander, in support of Task Force Vierra, named after the Joint Security Area (JSA) Battalion Commander. At 0700 hours a Republic of Korea Special Forces company, the 9th Infantry Regiment, and B Company, 2nd Engineers, moved into the JSA and cut down the infamous “Panmunjeom Tree”. B-52 bombers, escorted by U.S. F-4 fighters and ROK F-5 fighters flew at a high altitude near the JSA. At Osan Air Base, F-111 fighters had been armed and fueled, ready to take off at short notice. The aircraft carrier Midway task force had also been moved to a station just offshore. The 2nd Infantry Division delivered an unmistakable message to the North Koreans, as well as to the world.
Throughout the 1980 and early 1990s, Soldiers of the 2nd Infantry Division continued to patrol along the DMZ. With the end of the Cold War, 2nd Infantry Division Warriors left the DMZ in 1992, but remained forward deployed along the most heavily defended border in the world. In 1994, the death of the North Korean leader, Kim, IL Sung, created increased tensions on the Korean Peninsula, this time the North was threatening nuclear development. In 1994, and again in 1999, the 2nd Infantry Division received their 4th and 5th Republic of Korea Presidential Unit Citations.
On 29 March 1995, the 3rd Brigade, 2nd Infantry Division was reactivated at Fort Lewis, Washington as part of I Corps. It gained the fame of becoming the Army's first Stryker Brigade Combat Team in May of 2000.