Seoul, Sep 29 (EFE) .- The navies of South Korea, Japan and the US announced today that they will carry out an anti-submarine exercise on Friday to “counteract the growing threat” posed by submarine-launched ballistic missiles (SLBM) by part of North Korea.
The exercises “which are being held for the first time in five years since 2017, are expected to enhance the tripartite anti-submarine warfare capability in the East Sea (as the Sea of Japan is called in the two Koreas) to counter the growing threat of North Korean SLBM,” according to a statement released by the South Korean navy.
The text insists that Pyongyang continues “improving the capabilities of its SLBMs” and explains that the training will focus on “detecting, identifying and tracking North Korean submarines equipped with technology to launch SLBMs.”
The announcement comes following satellites detected preparations last week for what appears to be the premiere of a new North Korean submarine that would have the capacity to launch up to four SLBMs, compared to the only missile that is capable of loading the only North Korean submersible that has this technology. , the Sinpo (also called “Gorae”, whale in Korean).
With respect to the participating forces, South Korea contributes the destroyer Munmu the Great, Japan the destroyer Asahi and the United States the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan and its strike group, made up of the missile cruiser USS Chancellorsville and the destroyer USS Barry equipped with Aegis system.
The announcement comes on the day that US Vice President Kamala Harris landed in South Korea, planning to visit the militarized border between the two Koreas today.
In turn, North Korea launched two short-range ballistic missiles into the Sea of Japan the day before following firing another over the weekend, all in apparent response to the presence of the Ronald Reagan aircraft carrier in the region.
The last time the Ronald Reagan came to the peninsula to carry out joint maneuvers was in September 2017, in the midst of an escalation of tension following the last North Korean nuclear test to date.
Seoul, Tokyo and Washington are now seeking to send a message of strength in the face of the possibility that the northern regime will carry out a new atomic test.
Allied military intelligence considers that Pyongyang has been ready for months to execute what would be its seventh underground nuclear detonation at its Punggye-ri test center (northeast of the country). EFE
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