The US deployed its strategic nuclear-capable B-52 bomber to South Korea in a show of force against North Korea on Sunday, four days after the communist state claimed to have conducted a hydrogen bomb test.
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The US B-52 Stratofortress bomber, escorted by an F-16 fighter aircraft, took off from Andersen airbase in Guam and was escorted by one of Seoul’s F-15 fighters during its flight over the Osan airbase.
South Korean troops, near about 10 sites where loudspeakers started blaring propaganda, were on the highest alert, but have not detected any unusual movement from North Korea along the border, the Associated Press reported, citing Seoul’s Defense Ministry.
The flight mission demonstrated the strength of the alliance between the United States and the South Korea and the resolve of both nations to maintain stability and security on the Korean Peninsula, Pacific Command said.
The commander of combined US forces, Curtis Scaparrotti, made the order during a visit to the Osan Air Base which is operated jointly by the US and South Korea, a United States Forces Korea (USFK) official said.
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un praised the nuclear scientists and technicians involved in the country’s latest nuclear test last week, in an apparent attempt to extol the event and the success of the country’s first purported hydrogen bomb detonation.
North Korea appears to have increased efforts to drown out South Korean anti-Pyongyang broadcasts, with a spate of messages being broadcast from inside the isolated country’s border Monday.
A top North Korean ruling party officials recent warning that the Souths broadcasts have pushed the Korean Peninsula toward the brink of war is typical of Pyongyangs over-the-top rhetoric.
South Korea and Japan used a military hotline for the first time after of North Korea’s test, South Korea’s defense ministry said, in a sign the North’s behaviour is pushing the two old rivals closer together.
“The move is aimed at securing the safety of South Koreans as the North is expected to react to Seoul’s resumption of anti-North Korean loudspeaker broadcasts”, said Unification Ministry Spokesman Jeong Joon-hee.
The nuclear test raised tensions in north Asia.
The United States, South Korea, Japan and China have been testing for airborne or ground radiation in the region, but say they haven’t found any evidence supporting the claim of an H-bomb test.
Liu Yunshan, a member of the Chinese Politburo Standing Committee, stands next to North Korean leader Kim Jong-un during an event marking the North Korean Workers Party’s 70th anniversary in Pyongyang on October 10, 2015 in original footage from [North] Korean Central TV (left), but absent from the edited footage shown Saturday.
“It is the legitimate right of a sovereign state and a fair action that nobody can criticise”, he said. North Korea has repeatedly said that its weapons program is defensive and the only way to prevent a U.S.-led invasion of the country.
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Lt Gen Terrence O’Shaughnessy said the USA was committed to defending its ally South Korea. Upon completion of the flight over South Korea, the B-52 returned to Guam.
