The United States flew a pair of supersonic bombers over ally South Korea on Wednesday in a show of force the USA said was aimed at reminding the North of us powerful military assets in the region.
Advertisement
Television footage on Wednesday showed two supersonic B-1B Lancers flying low over the US Osan Air Base at Pyeongtaek, 64 kilometers (40 miles) south of Seoul. “The alliance grows stronger every day and we remain prepared to defend and to preserve the security of the Korean Peninsula and the region”, he said. The government has already frozen his assets, as well as her business associates and relatives who are believed to be supporting North Korea financially.
The U.S. Air Force is scheduled to hold its “Air Power Day” air show at Osan on Saturday and Sunday, for which it will open the base to tens of thousands of members of the public.
North Korea on Tuesday launched a successful ground test of a new high-powered rocket engine, according to state media, indicating the country is closer to acquiring long-range capabilities.
Lt. Gen. Thomas W. Bergeson, 7th Air Force commander, said the deployment was aimed at showing that the US has an unshakable commitment to defending South Korea.
The South Korean Defense Department told CNN the plans aren’t direct preparations for North Korea and that it will also work on a mock “sudden missile attack”.
China, which has objected to a planned US deployment of a THAAD missile defense system in the South to counter the North’s missile threat, called on “all parties to exercise restraint and to avoid any actions that could further escalate tensions”.
In a statement that ran in the Workers’ Party newspaper Rodong Sinmun, North Korea stated its fifth nuclear test marks the “peak” of its nuclear capability.
US President Barack Obama and President Xi Jinping of China both condemned the latest nuclear tests. Hyten has been nominated to lead U.S. Strategic Command.
The Sohae Center is the North’s newly upgraded rocket station where the February launch of a satellite and other rocket tests have been conducted.
North Korea launched a satellite in February; however, the test of the Kwangmyeongsong-4 rocket was widely perceived overseas as a test of intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) technology.
Advertisement
The DPRK is expected here to launch a new long-range rocket at or around October 10 to mark the 71st anniversary of the founding of the ruling Workers’ Party of Korea.
