US, South Korea conduct navy drills to counter regional ‘threat’ from the North
South Korea and the United States began week-long joint navy drills in the waters around the Korean peninsula on Monday, amid high tensions over North Korea’s nuclear and missile programme.
North Korea has called frequent joint military exercises by the US and South Korea “rehearsal for war”.
It’s not clear whether he was referring to a US bomb or a North Korean bomb.
Tensions on the Korean peninsula have risen sharply in recent weeks following a series of weapons tests by Pyongyang, including its sixth and most powerful nuclear test on September 3 and two missile launches over Japan, and a war of words between the Trump and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un.
North Korea is preparing to test a long-range missile which it believes can reach the US west coast, said a Russian lawmaker who returned from a visit to Pyongyang earlier this month.
Speaking at a military conference in Seoul on Monday, General Terrence O’Shaughnessy, commander of US Pacific Air Force, said North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile development programme were “truly a threat to us all” and the US is poised to defend allies.
“Although countries like North Korea threaten regional peace and security, our allied air power must be ready to respond with rapid, lethal and overwhelming force to respond to preserve our interests,” O’Shaughnessy said.
