Republic of Korea Army chief of staff Gen. Jang, Jun Gyu welcomes his American counterpart Gen. Mark Milley Aug. 19 at the ROK Ministry of National Defense. (Photo by Tim Oberle, Eighth Army Public Affairs)

Nothing is happening yet, but you get the distinct picture all the potential combatants in a new Korean War are looking for ways to ensure they can get their citizens out of harm’s way if bullets begin to fly.

Japan

Around 60,000 Japanese citizens currently reside in South Korea, the news outlet reported. About 38,000 are long-term residents, while roughly 19,000 are tourists or short-term visitors. “If the U.S. decided on a military strike against the North, the Japanese government would start moving toward an evacuation on its own accord regardless of whether the American plans are public,” a Japanese government source told the Nikkei Review. Japan’s proposed plan is comprised of four steps: seek to limit unessential travel to South Korea, discourage all travel to the South, advise Japanese citizens to evacuate and encourage them to shelter in place.

China

Chinese people living and working in North Korea were warned to return home immediately as dictator Kim Jong-un pushes the world to the brink of World War 3. The Chinese embassy in North Korean capital Pyongyang issued the warning as its volatile neighbour and ally geared up for an expected sixth nuclear test. It is the first time any such order has been issued.

And this is the most interesting:

Elisabeth Cordray, a U.S. deputy assistant secretary of defense, visited South Korea after North Korea’s latest nuclear test to check on preparations for evacuating U.S. citizens in the event of war, it emerged Tuesday. The visit has sparked speculation of an impending U.S. military attack against North Korea, but the U.S. Forces Korea claimed Cordray’s visit was a “routine inspection.” Cordray visited the 19th Expeditionary Sustainment Command, the logistic support arm of the Eighth Army, in Daegu on Sep. 13 and met its commander, John Sullivan, according to her Facebook page. The command said Tuesday that Cordray “familiarized” herself with the process of evacuating U.S. citizens from South Korea in case of an emergency. She also discussed the readiness level of U.S. troops and was briefed on progress in relocating the main USFK military garrison in Yongsan to Pyeongtaek.

There are, according to official South Korean numbers, 136,663 American citizens living in South Korea. This is 7.6% of the foreign residents of South Korea. China is the largest source of foreign nationals with 898,654. Vietnam has 129,973, Thailand has 94,314 and the Philippines has 53,538.

If war breaks out we can go about it in one of two ways. We can go from a standing start and deal with evacuation of our non-combatants when we can, or we can order an evacuation and hope that North Korea does not strike while that is going on. Short of ordering people out of the country, keep an eye out for the US to discourage travel to South Korea, restrict the ability of military dependents to travel to Korea, and finally to order military dependents out of the country.