As a show of force, the South Korean and U.S. militaries flew 20 fighter planes over waters off South Korea’s western coast Tuesday. A senior U.S. official warned that a forceful response is possible if North Korea launches its first nuclear explosion in almost five years.
South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff stated that the demonstration included 16 South Korean aircraft, including F-35A stealth fighters, and four F-16 fighter jets from the United States. It was intended to demonstrate their ability to quickly respond to North Korean provocations.
The flight occurred a day after eight surface-to-surface rockets were fired by the allies into South Korea’s eastern waterways to match the weekend display of missiles by North Korea. North Korea fired similar weapons from different locations Sunday in what was probably its largest single-day test event.
According to U.S. officials and South Korean officials, North Korea is almost ready for another nuclear test at Punggye-ri, its northeastern town. In September 2017, it claimed to have successfully detonated a thermonuclear weapon designed for its intercontinental missiles. This was the sixth such test overall.
While visiting Seoul to discuss the standoff between South Korean and Japanese allies and Wendy Sherman, Deputy Secretary to State warned of a swift and forceful response to any North nuclear test.
The Biden administration has pledged to press for international sanctions in the event that North Korea continues with its nuclear test. However, with the U.N. Security Council split, there are no prospects for new meaningful punitive measures.
“Any nuclear attack would be in total violation of U.N. Security Council resolutions.” Sherman stated that there would be a prompt and forceful response to such an attack after meeting with Cho Hyun-dong, South Korea’s Vice Foreign Minister.
She said, “We continue to urge Pyongyang cease its destabilizing or provocative activities and choose to follow the path of diplomacy.”
Sherman and Cho plan a trilateral meeting on Wednesday with the Japanese Vice Foreign Minister Moritakeo over the North Korean nuclear question.
North Korea’s Sunday launches extended a provocation streak in weapons testing this year, which also included the country’s first demonstrations ever of ICBMs since 2017.
Kim Jong Un, North Korea’s leader, has increased his weapons development since he took power in 2011. Experts believe that North Korea’s next test could prove that it can build small bombs, which could be fitted on a multiwarhead ICBM.
Rafael Mariano Grossi is the director general of International Atomic Energy Agency. He said Monday that there are indications of a passage at Punggye-ri’s testing ground being reopened. This could be in preparation for a nuclear bomb test.
Ned Price, spokesperson for the State Department, told Washington reporters that the United States is concerned that North Korea might seek its seventh test in the days ahead of Sherman’s meeting in Seoul.
Recent punitive actions taken by the Biden administration in response to North Korea’s recent weapons test have been largely symbolic and unilateral. Russia and China vetoed the U.S.-sponsored Security Council resolution that would have placed additional sanctions on North Korea for its May 25th ballistic test.
Price stated that unilateral actions will never be the most appealing or effective response.
Since 2019, nuclear talks between Washington, Pyongyang and Iran have been stalled due to disagreements over exchanging crippling U.S. sanctions for North’s disarmament efforts. Despite mounting economic difficulties, Kim has increased his testing activities and shown no willingness or desire to give up an arsenal that he considers his best guarantee of survival.
Experts say that his government has rejected open-ended offers from the Biden administration and is determined to convert the dormant negotiations on denuclearization into a mutual arms reduction process.
Kim’s pressure campaign has not been hampered by the Covid-19 epidemic spreading through his 26 million-strong population. This is despite a lack of health tools and public services. Although the North has rejected U.S.-South Korean offers of assistance, there are signs that it may have received some vaccines from its ally China.
