Ministry of National Defense Republic of Korea

Korea and the U.S. concentrating its will to ‘punish North Korea’ in accelerated pace

The U.S. President Obama strongly criticize, “North Korea must count the cost”

The U.S. B-1B strategic bomber redeployed…showing off its landing in the Korean Peninsula

On September 21, the National Assembly including both the ruling and opposition parties,  passed a resolution to censure the 5th North Korean nuclear test and to urge North Korea to dispose of its nuclear technologies. A consensus on the need to punish the North’s nuclear ambitions has been growing, with the U.S. President Barack Obama criticizing their nuclear experiment at the UN General Assembly and authorizing the deployment of a B-1B strategic bomber.

The resolution submitted to a plenary session was passed with 200 yes votes and 3 abstentions out of 203 attendees.

The resolution said, “We hereby give North Korea a strict warning that its reckless provocations will only cause it to be further neglected by and pressured from the international community, leading to its isolation from the international community. North Korea should realize that it cannot survive by developing a nuclear power, and take immediate, effective measures such as total abandonment of any plans related to nuclear development.”

It strongly appealed, “The Korean government will adopt a readiness posture to effectively respond to the North’s nuclear weapons and submarine-launched ballistic missile (SLBM), as well as take steps to ensure our powerful, multi-directional military reaction capability so that we can disarm various military threats including weapons of mass destruction (WMD).” Also, it urged, “To solve the North Korean nuclear problem and establish peace in the Korean Peninsula as well as in Northeast Asia, we will make a diplomatic effort to bring North Korea into the meaningful denuclearization conversation for total disposal of its nuclear technologies.”

Prior to this, the U.S. President Obama, in a keynote speech, highlighted that the North’s nuclear ambitions are putting the international community in danger, stating that a nation that does not comply with the basic rules will be required to count the cost. He also said, “Iran improved its global security through cooperation with other countries when it accepted limitations on its nuclear program, but North Korea is putting us all in danger as it pushes ahead with nuclear tests. The sharp contrast between the economically developed South and the wasteland-like North proves that controlled economies are a dead-end, with no further place to go.”

As a gesture reaffirming the will of the U.S. to protect Republic of Korea, a B-1B strategic bomber showed off the scene that it moved from Guam and landed at Osan air base, where it is shown here landing. Lieutenant General Thomas Bergeson, a commander of the 7th U.S. Air Force, said, “The bond between Korea and the U.S. is very firm like iron, and the power of this promise won’t be weakened by any aggressive actions by North Korea.” He also emphasized that the B-1B strategic bomber is just one of various counterplans devised by the Korea-U.S. alliance.

Significantly, Commander Bergeson underlined that the Korea-U.S. alliance is getting stronger, and that the military is ready to protect and defend security in the Korean Peninsula as well as in the region.

Lieutenant General Lee Wang-keun, the Air Force operations commander said, “The Korea-U.S. combined air force maintains close information sharing and strong combined mission capabilities based on this situational awareness. If the enemy provokes us, we will respond strongly to remove their additional provocation will and fighting forces as well.”

The B-1B Lancer, deployed in Korea on the day, is a supersonic strategic bomber which can travel at Mach 2. It is a weapons system that can deploy guided and unguided weapons from the U.S. firepower, anytime and anywhere.

A military official stated, “The B-1B strategic bomber’s landing is linked with a flight on the 13th, and it’s just the first step in enhancing the Korea-U.S. alliance.”

By Chul-Hwan, Kim < droid001@dema.mil.kr >
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