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U.S., ROK boost military assets on Korean Peninsula

Felix Kim

Defense chiefs from the United States and the Republic of Korea (ROK) say they plan to increase the deployment of strategic U.S. military assets to the Korean Peninsula to deter and defend against threats posed by North Korea.

ROK Defense Minister Song Young-moo conveyed the message on October 14, 2017, during a visit to the Ohio-class guided-missile submarine USS Michigan, which arrived at the Busan naval port, the command center for U.S. Naval Forces Korea and home to the ROK Naval Operations Command. Eleven days later, Song was joined by U.S. Secretary of Defense James Mattis in reaffirming this position at the 49th Republic of Korea-U.S. Security Consultative Meeting held in Seoul, South Korea.

“The minister and secretary highlighted the increased frequency and intensity of deployments of U.S. Navy and Air Force assets,” said a joint statement issued at the close of the meeting. The announcement accompanied a pledge “to develop extended deterrence-related policies, procedures and consultative mechanisms.”

The boost in deployments was recognized by Moon Seong-mook, chief of the Unification Strategy Center at the Korea Research Institute for National Strategy, as “one of the most meaningful decisions” to result from the meeting. Moon said ROK’s preference is for a regular rotation of deployments of U.S. Navy and Air Force assets to the peninsula and that the costs of housing and maintaining these assets would at least partly be absorbed by the ROK.

“Air Force assets, ranging from the F-35B and F-22 to the B-1B and B-52, can be immediately deployed from Japan or Guam, while Navy assets such as the USS Ronald Reagan and USS Michigan, pictured, will be visiting ROK when necessary,” Moon said. “Deployments will be made based on the agreement between the two countries in advance. These strategic assets would be deployed to the peninsula as a show of force for short periods of time, but also to engage in operations and drills with the ROK military. Such deployments will help enhance the joint defense capabilities of the alliance.”

Deterring North Korea from further provocations, such as its August 29, 2017, launch of a ballistic missile over northern Japan, is the goal of heightened deployments, Moon said.

“Air Force assets such as stealth fighter jets and bombers and Navy assets such as nuclear submarines and supercarriers, if they are around the peninsula, surely put pressure on Pyongyang,” Moon said. “Their deployment itself conveys a strong message to the North Korean regime, that if they make a hasty decision, they can be destroyed. A military option, as President Trump said, is on the table.”

The announcement of the increased deployments was followed by mention of the alliance’s decision to operationalize the Terminal High-Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) battery and to enhance information-sharing on North Korean missile threats.

The strengthening of the ROK-U.S. alliance, Moon concluded, as demonstrated by additional assets, numerous joint military drills and live fire exercises, has been responsible for Pyongyang’s relative silence in recent weeks. He added that while additional weapons and missile tests from the North may come, the strengthened deterrence likely will prevent Pyongyang from being as overtly provocative as it has been.

Felix Kim is a FORUM contributor reporting from Seoul, South Korea.

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