Pacific Perspective:North Korea Tests New Threat to Allied Forces

On 11-12 September 2021,North Korea sucessfully tested a new long-range cruise missile.The missiles flew a figure 8 pattern and crashed into the sea after about a two-hour flight.The state news agency article appered on page 2 and included photos.Pyongyang claims the missiles can hit targets more than 930 miles away,putting US and South Korean troops well within range of the new weapon.North Korea is allowed to develop such jet-powered missiles by the UN,which only forbids the hostile regime of Kim Jong Un to conduct ballistic missile development. The missile has been in development for two years,and South Korea believes the story about it was credible.As for South Korea,it recently tested a Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM). The North Korean cruise missile,which is possibly nuclear capable,was depicted launching from a truck.It could pose a complex threat to Allied Forces,enabling the North to conduct an attack on them from all directions with a mix of ballistic and cruise missiles, as well as substantial artillery assets. The US has about 28,000 troops in South Korea and conducts periodic wargames with South Korean forces.

Korea:As War Becomes More Likely,Large Airpower Drill Gains Importance - plus which other nations are committed to help defend South Korea

In a swirl of rhetorical skirmishing between the US and North Korea,US-South Korea Airpower Exercise Vigilant Ace 18-1 began on 4 December 2017 and concludes on 8 December.About 12,000 US personnel and Republic of Korea Airmen are taking part in a realistic air combat drill with 230 aircraft stationed at eight bases,US Pacific Air Forces said.There will be a decided emphasis on US fifth generation fighters,with 12 US Marine Corps F-35B and six US Air Force F-35A aircraft joined by US Air Force F-22 Raptors.In addition,the stalwart F-16 Fighting Falcon and F-15 Eagle will assist;as well as US Navy and Marine Corps F/A-18 Hornet/Super Hornet fighters;US Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II ground attack jets;E/A-18 Growler electronic attack jets;B-1B Lancer bombers;C-17 Globemaster III transport aircraft;and ROK F-15K Slam Eagle and F-4 Phantom II fighters as well.*
According to a release from 51st Fighter Wing Commander Colonel William Betts,Osan Air Base,ROK:
My biggest expectation for the Wing is to remove any 'exercise' mindset from the equation and maximize the realism of every response.We will ensure we have no regrets if we find ourselves executing contingency operations.
In the event we need to help defend our 5.1 million Korean allies,I need to be sure the 51st Fighter Wing is synchronized with the Combined Joint-Force.Vigilant Ace is a chance for us to do just that;focus on getting smarter,faster and more capable than we were yesterday while we generate combat airpower and strengthen the alliance.*
Korean locations involved in the drills are:Kunsan,Osan,Jungwan,Gwangju,Wonju,Daegu,Seosan and Cheongju.At these bases,the USAF,US Marine Corps and US Navy will be testing their warfighting skills with the ROK Air Force,focused on the full-spectrum deterrence of,or,if necessary,actual defeating of,the rapidly evolving threats from the North.Units from across US Pacific Command are embedding at these bases to augment their combat forces and ensure VA 18-1 is as true to life as possible,enhancing operational and tactical level coordination,while integrating and practicing combat operations against realistic air and ground threats.The drills will ensure the capability to deter aggression,preserve the armistice,defend the ROK and defeat any attack against the alliance.
North Korea calls VA 18-1:
a ceaseless large-scale war game,creating a situation that a nuclear war could break out at any moment.*
To the mind of US National Security Advisor H.R. McMaster,the risk of war from North Korean leader Kim Jong Un:
I think it's increasing every day,which means we are in a race to be able to solve this problem.Every time he conducts a missile launch,a nuclear test,he gets better.He's getting closer and closer,and there's not much time left.*
In the event of war,besides the US and ROK,15 other nations committed to help defend the ROK when the 1953 armistice was signed.Several of them sent contingents to annual wargames on the Korean Peninsula in 2017,including:
Australia,Canada,Columbia,Denmark,France,New Zealand,the Netherlands and the UK.The USAF 7th Air Force says:
This effort will require coordinated and integrated Airpower in a congested and contested battlespace.

North Korea Threatens Japan with Latest Missile Test - US,South Korea respond with B-1Bs,fighter jets and aircraft carriers

On 29 May 2017,Memorial Day in the US,North Korea launched its third ballistic missile test in less than three weeks and its twelfth of the year.The missile was fired at 0539 hours locval time from near Wonsan,Kanguan Province,on North Korea's east coast.It traveled 248 miles to a point in Japan's exclusive economic zone,a place with heavy commercial ship and aircraft traffic that is within 200 miles of the Japanese coast.*
South Korea's Foreign Ministry said:
It is a severe threat to the peace and stability of not only the Korean Penninsula,but also the international community.Since our government took office,North Korea has been frequently and repeatedly conducting provocation in such a manner.*
The South Korean Joint Chiefs of Staff added:
North Korea's continuous provocative actions will cause its own isolation and it will be facing strong punishment from our own military.*
Defence experts say the number and pace of the missile tests mean North Korea is accelerating reaching its goal of developing an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile capable of delivering a nuclear warhead to the mainland US.*
For his part,Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe stated that:
We can never tolerate North Korea's repeated provocations violating repeated warnings from the international community.We have lodged a firm protest against North Korea as we have agreed at the G7 Summit that North Korea is the priority of the international community.In order to deter North Korea,we will take concrete action together with the US.We will maintain high vigilance in coordination with South Korea and we will take all possible measures to secure the safety of the people of Japan.*
In the event,South Korea revealed that,at about 1030 hours,two US Air Force B-1B Lancer strategic bombers arrived over the East Sea some five hours after the missile test.The swept-wing bombers flew about 80 kilometers east of Gangueng,a city near the Military Demarcation Line that defines the border between North and South Korea.Warplanes from the aircraft carrier USS Carl Vinson (CVN 70) and South Korean F-15K fighter jets joined in the responsive drill.North Korea described it as a nuclear bomb-dropping exercise,but:
Such military provocations of the US imperialists is a dangerous reckless racket for bringing the situation on the Korean Peninsula to the brink of war.*
Indeed,the KNCA official North Korean news agency disclosed that North Korean dictator Kim Jong Un had recently watched the test of a new type of anti-aircraft guided weapon system organised by the Academy of National Defense Science.This weapon system,whose operational capacity has been thoroughly verified,should be mass-produced to be deployed all over the country.It will completely destroy the enemy's wild dream to command the air,boasting of air supremacy and weapon almighty.*
Besides the Carl Vinson,the US has the carrier USS Ronald Reagan (CVN 76) in the Western Pacific as well.What is more,it is reportedly sending the carrier USS Nimitz (CVN 68 ) to join them.Three carriers in one region is almost unheard of for the US Navy.

US Pacific Command:Strategy and Assets

China is trying to change the balance of power in the Pacific,Admiral Samuel Locklear agreed,appearing before the Senate Armed Serrvices Committee on Tuesday.Their maritime strategy is pretty clear.It is an incremental strategy.They look at their strategy and the current situation in the South China Sea,and I believe they think they are on their strategy,said the admiral,who is Commander,US Pacific Command.
They watch very carefully the US;our alliances,the status of those alliances;our forces,the capability of our forces.I believe there is more defence spending than they report annually.I would agree that their actions have been provocative.*
The littoral combat ship has a shallow draft,has speed,has a small crew.It only meets a portion of what my requirements are.I'm still a supporter of the LCS and what it can do.If you talk about having a 320-325 ship navy,having 50-55 littoral combat ships makes sense;if you're talking about a smaller navy with budget constraints,the LCS doesn't make a lot of sense,and I can understand why it would be reduced.*
We are seeing a Chinese navy with a more global reach;more forward-deployed,longer deployments;out of area deployments by their submarines.As their economic interests grow,they need to protect those interests.Certainly they have a credible submarine force today.In the next decade or so,they'll have a modernised force of 50-60 submarines.That's a lot of submarines for a regional power.They also have sophisticated surface ships.Their missile technology is among the best in the world.*
We have had a good return of our Marines back to the Asia-Pacific.I have five Amphibious Ready Groups:four in San Diego;one in Sasebo,Japan.I have asked that additional amphibious lift be put into the Pacific.We wouldn't be able to do an opposed amphibious assault without it.*
My assessmet across the joint force is,we are where we need to be in detecting submarines.China's advances in nuclear technology will enable their acquiring a submarine-based nuclear deterrant by 2017.We still maintain a significant advantage in undersea warfare,and we need to maintain that.Submarines figure heavily into scenarios all the way from peace into contingency.They have a wide range of missions.These have been figured into the design of the future Virginia class attack submarine.*
I believe our industrial base is under pressure.We have to continually update that workforce.It has to be figured into the calculation of our national security strategy for the long term.*
Our first priority is to support General Scaparrotti in Korea and make sure Kim Jong Un is contained,then to support our alliances,maintain our parterships,maintain peace and stability.US military pressure has maintained the stability.We have a strategic partnership with Singapore-also partnerships with Malaysia,Indonesia and Brunei.
The Asia-Pacific has 50% of the world:17% of the land;83% of the water.Six out of ten people live on that 17%.Most of the global economy is generated there.We're a Pacific nation.Our economy is Pacific-centric.It's important that a peaceful,stable Pacific be maintained,according to Admiral Samuel J Locklear III of US Pacific Command.

Early Edition:Naval Exercises To Continue

Naval exercises in the Yellow Sea off the Korean peninsula by South Korean and U.S. forces will proceed in spite of North Korea's violent outburst Tuesday.The aircraft carrier USS George Washington(CVN 73) left its homeport in Japan as scheduled on Tuesday and will join the maneuvers shortly.
North Korea had opened fire with K-9 155mm Howitzers on Yeongpyeong Island in the Yellow Sea,7 miles off the coast of South Korea,killing 2 South Korean Marines and injuring 3 civilians and 16 military personnel.The attack lasted about an hour.
Fires from the barrages were still burning at nightfall.Thousands of civilians were being evacuated from a chain of 31 islands.South Korea had responded to the aggression with barrages of its own.The Pentagon said it had no plans to attack the north,and U.S. forces were not put on alert.
In March,a North Korean submarine sank the South Korean warship Cheonan in the same area,killing 46 South Korean sailors.The north doesn't recognize the western maritime border established by the U.N. in 1953,at the truce of the Korean War,which was never formally ended.Several clashes have occurred over the disputed maritime border and along the Demilitarized Zone on land.
President Barrack Obama was awakened at 3:55 am and told of the incident,which he later condemned.North Korea is in the midst of a transition of power from Kim Jung Il to his son Kim Jong Un,who was recently made a four star general,and many observers see the attack as the son's baptism of fire,gaining him credibility with North Korea's powerful army.
The USS George Washington carries about 80 aircraft.Powered by two nuclear reactors,it can cruise at 30+ knots.Around 28,000 U.S. troops are stationed in South Korea.
Update:The bodies of two construction workers were found buried in the rubble left by North Korea's artillery barrage on Tuesday,raising the death toll to four.The USS George Washington and her carrier battle group should arrive on scene by Sunday to conduct four days of naval exercises with South Korea.North Korea has threatened more attacks if the exercises violate even a millimeter of its perceived territory.
An angry protest against the North Korean aggression took place in Seoul,South Korea.
Update 2:South Korea has reinforced Yeongpyeong Island and other islands nearby with 4,000 more of its marines.General Walter Sharp,commander of U.S. forces in Korea,has toured the devastated island,describing North Korea's attack as being in clear violation of the armistice agreement of 1953.South Korean veterans bitterly criticized the government's response to the aggression,considering it weak and slow.Fire was not returned for 13 minutes.
U.S. and South Korean naval exercises will begin in the Yellow Sea around noon on Sunday,a U.S. Navy spokesman said.They will not be live fire exercises because they are being held in a high traffic area.The maneuvers were planned in advance of the North Korean attack.