to the west. When the peace talks began between the communist forces and the United Nations Command, the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry Regiment, and 4th Platoon, Company C, 70th Heavy Tank Battalion were selected to serve as the honor guard for the Peace Camp at Munsan-ni and were placed under direct Eighth Army control. The battalion briefly went into reserve on 29 July, but was back in the 1st Cavalry Division line in early August. The battalion continued combat reconnaissance patrols through September and briefly went on the offensive with the 1st Cavalry Division during Operation Commando in October 1951. Having attained their objectives, but with significant casualties, the division went on the defensive and the 70th Heavy Tank Battalion dug into their positions on the line. For the first time since early after their arrival in Korea, the 70th saw large numbers of communist tanks across their front, though they were consistently beaten off with concentrated tank and artillery fire, sometimes in conjunction also with close air support. Relief from combat On 21 November 1951, the battalion, less Company B (still in the line supporting the 8th Cavalry Regiment in combat), went into reserve and moved to a new assembly area. Upon closing on the assembly area, they learned they, along with the 1st Cavalry Division, were to be relieved by the 45th Infantry Division, and were to redeploy to Hokkaido, Japan. The 70th Heavy Tank Battalion was to be relieved by the 245th Tank Battalion, the organic tank battalion of the 45th Infantry Division. Company B was finally withdrawn from the line on 16 December. The battalion began transferring property to the 245th Tank Battalion on 7 December and the bulk of the battalion departed Korea by ship on 17 December. Company B departed on 28 December 1951. Upon arrival at Camp Chitose 2, in Hokkaido, the battalion began taking over the property of the 245th Tank Battalion. The 70th Heavy Tank Battalion later moved from Camp Chitose 2 to Camp Fuji and remained in Japan until 15 October 1957, when it was inactivated and relieved of assignment to the 1st Cavalry Division. Reorganization and Cold War service When the Army instituted the Combat Arms Regimental System (CARS) in the late 1950s, the 70th Tank Battalion was selected for conversion as the 70th Armor Regiment. The tank companies, where appropriate, supplied the lineage and heritage of the respective