Dena Takruri visits 35th ADA BDE

35th Air Defense Artillery Brigade
Story by Staff Sgt. Monik Phan

Date: 08.15.2017
Posted: 08.20.2017 06:03
News ID: 245380
AJ+ and 35th ADA BDE Officers and Soldiers

OSAN AIR BASE, South Korea (Aug. 18, 2017) – Dena Takruri, senior correspondent with AJ+ based in San Francisco, visited the Battery Delta, 6-52 Air Defense Artillery Battalion, tactical site Aug. 15 at Osan Air Base, South Korea.

Takruri and her team traveled to Osan AB to gain insight on 35th ADA Brigade’s mission set in South Korea, and their capability to “Fight Tonight.”

“Fight Tonight means that our Soldiers and our equipment needs to be ready to defend Osan Air Base at a moment's notice,” said Capt. Lance J. Oh, commander of Battery Delta, 6-52 ADA Battalion. “We are ready 24/7, 365 days to respond to any threat.”

The brigade’s mission set is to protect the Korean peninsula and provide area defense from aerial attacks and missile threats.

In 1953, the Korean War came to an end with the Korean Armistice Agreement and not a peace treaty. Since the signing, the U.S. military has stood side-by-side with their Republic of Korea counterparts.

Takuri’s goal is to explore why the U.S. military maintains a heavy presence in South Korea. Her team will visit various locations across the peninsula such as the Demilitarized Zone, Seoul and a village near the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense site. She will interview the community within those locations. She will also interview a North Korean defector. Her interviews will help her understand the country’s current situation on the ground.

The U.S. military has maintained a presence on the peninsula since 1951. Takruri wants to provide a thorough explanation and the importance of the long-term U.S. military presence in South Korea in her next story.

“We want to show what it means to be ready to fight tonight,” said Takruri.

Her story will include the local community’s perspectives on the ROK-US alliance and the U.S. military presence.

AJ+ is a global news and current events community that uses multiple digital media platforms. They belong to Al Jazeera Media Network.

“We work and pursue every opportunity to work with our ROK partners here and around the Korean Theater of Operation,” said Oh. “We will work to maintain our relationships with our ROK counterparts and strengthen the alliance.”