![]() Nowhere is this more evident than in the much-ballyhooed Marine Corps modernization - essentially a divestment of global force-in-readiness capabilities to fund a stationary and relatively insignificant anti-ship missile force positioned in China’s front yard. actions still tend to focus on territorial China, as though it were merely a defensive, regional power. complacency to create dependency and establish hegemony.ĭespite much impressive rhetoric about China’s global ambitions, most U.S. Many of these efforts are purposely designed to fill vacuums caused by U.S. The country is working to establish dominance in areas of critical minerals, cyber technologies, global finance, transoceanic shipping, chip manufacturing and biotechnology. The air force said the exercise was aimed at verifying precision strike capabilities and reaffirming the credibility of Seoul’s “three-axis” strategy against North Korean nuclear threats - preemptively striking sources of attacks, intercepting incoming missiles and neutralizing the North’s leadership and key military facilities.Īssociated Press writer Mari Yamaguchi in Tokyo contributed to this report.China’s expanding influence is not confined to a single geospatial plane. “The problem is that continued testing helps Pyongyang perfect its technology, strengthen its nuclear weapons capability that threatens South Korea and Japan, increase the likelihood of miscalculation that could lead to inadvertent conflict, and accumulate political leverage ahead of future diplomatic talks with Washington.”įollowing the North’s announcement of the drone test on Friday, South Korea’s air force released details of a five-day joint drill with the United States last week that included live-fire demonstrations of air-to-air and air-to-ground weapons. ![]() “It appears North Korea might be practicing, or signaling that it’s practicing, the use of nuclear strikes, both preemptive and retaliatory, in a range of scenarios that are authorized in its nuclear doctrine,” said Duyeon Kim, a senior analyst at the Center for a New American Security. It had set into law an escalatory nuclear doctrine that authorizes pre-emptive nuclear strikes in a broad range of scenarios where it may perceive its leadership as under threat. North Korea already is coming off a record year in weapons testing, launching more than 70 missiles in 2022. The weapons tested this month included an intercontinental ballistic missile and a series of short-range missiles intended to overwhelm South Korean defenses as North Korea tries to demonstrate an ability to conduct nuclear strikes on both South Korea and the U.S. North Korea has launched more than 20 ballistic and cruise missiles on 11 occasions this year as it tries to force the United States to accept its nuclear status and negotiate a removal of sanctions from a position of strength. North Korea had also fired a short-range missile when the USS Ronald Reagan and its battle group arrived for joint drills with South Korea in September, which was the last time the United States sent an aircraft carrier to waters near the Korean Peninsula. But the allies have continued their field training in a show of force against the North’s rising threats. The United States and South Korea completed their biggest springtime exercises in years last week, which had included both computer simulations and live-fire field exercises. ![]() commitment to defend its ally with the full range of options, including nuclear, in face of the North’s “escalating nuclear and missile threats.” Jang Do Young, a South Korean navy spokesperson, said the drills were aimed at sharpening joint operational capabilities and demonstrating the U.S. The launches may have been timed for the arrival of the USS Nimitz and its strike group, including a guided missile cruiser and two destroyers, which engaged in air defense exercises and other drills with South Korean warships in waters near Jeju island. ![]() The seventh missile test this month underscored heightening tensions in the region as both the North’s weapons tests and the U.S.-South Korea joint military exercises have intensified in a cycle of tit-for-tat. aircraft carrier and its battle group began exercises with South Korean warships on Monday, hours after North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles in an apparent protest of the allies’ expanding drills. SEOUL, South Korea (AP) - Fighter jets roared off the USS Nimitz as the nuclear-powered U.S. ![]()
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |