Pyongyang threat: US bombers conduct drill in South Korea

The B-1B Lancers conducted an air-to-surface firing drill near the border with North Korea

Two US strategic bombers led a joint military exercise in South Korea on Saturday in response to this week’s launch by North Korea of an intercontinental ballistic missile capable of striking Alaska.

The B-1B Lancers, deployed from the US base in Guam, conducted an air-to-surface firing drill in Gangwon province, near the border with North Korea, the US Air Force said in a statement. They were joined by South Korean F-15 and US F-16 fighter jets. The mission was in response to the “increasingly escalatory actions” by North Korea including the firing of an ICBM, the Pacific Air Forces said.

North Korea’s first confirmed test of an intermediate-range ballistic missile is becoming a key test of President Donald Trump’s vow to stop Pyongyang’s weapons programs. US officials said this week the weapon could be capable of flying as far as 5,500 km, enough to put Alaska within the range of an attack. While the response by the US military is to a certain extent a show of force, the firing drill was unusual, according to Koh Yu-Hwan, a professor of North Korean studies at Dongguk University.

“The revealing of the drill by bombers is saber-rattling by South Korea and the US against the launch of the ICBM,” Koh said. “This time, the bombers carried out a firing drill, which is unusual.”

The drill was aimed at precision strikes against core military facilities of the enemy, including a launch pad for a ballistic missile, according to a South Korean Air Force statement. On their way to return to the Guam base, the US bombers joined Japanese fighter jets and carried out a drill over the East China Sea, the US said.

Bloomberg