[Yang Nak-gyu's Defence Club] Strategic Weapons Gathering Again on the Korean Peninsula

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Yang Nak-gyu, Military Specialist Reporter] The US Navy's nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln (CVN-72, 100,000 tons) entered international waters in the East Sea on the 12th. Amid expectations of North Korea's military provocations, strategic bombers stationed at Andersen Air Force Base in Guam are also expected to take off for the Korean Peninsula one after another.

According to military officials, "It is understood that the Abraham Lincoln is in the Sea of Japan (East Sea)," adding, "This is believed to be a warning in response to the possibility of North Korea's strategic provocations such as nuclear tests around the 110th anniversary of Kim Il-sung's birthday on the 15th and the 90th anniversary of the founding of the Korean People's Revolutionary Army on the 25th."

The US aircraft carrier's entry into the East Sea is the first in 4 years and 5 months since November 2017. At that time, North Korea continued nuclear tests and test launches of intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs), while the USS Theodore Roosevelt (CVN-71) and USS Nimitz (CVN-68) conducted joint exercises with the Republic of Korea Navy. When a US Navy carrier strike group conducts operations, it is typically accompanied by 3 to 4 destroyers and more than 2 nuclear-powered submarines.

From this day, South Korea and the US planned to start the Crisis Management Staff Training (CMST), a preparatory exercise for joint drills, raising the possibility of joint exercises between the ROK Navy and the US carrier strike group, but it was reported that the decision was made not to conduct them.

At Barksdale Air Force Base in Louisiana, strategic bombers such as the B-52H Stratofortress, B-1B Lancer, and B-2 Spirit are on standby. The B-52 strategic bombers were withdrawn to the mainland during the Donald Trump administration in 2020 but have been decided to be redeployed on a rotational basis. The B-52 also flew over the Korean Peninsula as a warning to North Korea during the axe murder incident at Panmunjom in 1976.

Along with the US aircraft carrier, amphibious assault ships are also gathering in nearby waters of the Korean Peninsula. The amphibious assault ship USS America is stationed at the US Forces Japan base in Sasebo.

If North Korea actually conducts a test launch of a new ICBM, the US's direct counter-operation would be the launch of the Minuteman III (LGM-30A) ICBM. The Minuteman III, deployed at Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, has a range of about 10,000 km and can reach Pyongyang within 30 minutes after launch. The Minuteman III is a core nuclear force of the US military, fundamentally different from North Korea's ICBMs, which have yet to be practically verified.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of National Defense reportedly included in a recent transition committee briefing a plan to redeploy US strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula if North Korea carries out provocations such as ICBM launches. It was also reported that the plan includes effectively reactivating the expanded deterrence strategy consultation body (EDSCG) between South Korea and the US, which began during the Park Geun-hye administration but was suspended under the current government, to discuss the regular rotational deployment and stationing of US strategic assets.