US plans naval exercises with South Korea:Pentagon

US plans naval exercises with South Korea

entagon

rawstory.com

The US military on Monday said it will carry out anti-submarine and other naval exercises with South Korea in the "near future" after a North Korean sub sank a South Korean warship.

The announcement came after an international investigation last week concluded that a North Korean submarine fired a heavy torpedo at the Cheonan on March 26, sinking the South Korean vessel and killing 46 sailors.

The decision to conduct anti-submarine as well as maritime interdiction exercises with Seoul's military "are a result of the findings of this recent incident," Pentagon spokesman Bryan Whitman

(visit the link for the full news article)

When was the last time the US conducted anti-submarine exercises in the area?

When was the last time the US scheduled an exercise in direct result of a nation's attack on an ally?

I really am getting a bad vibe from this one..

So much for the billions of dollars of taxpayer money used to pay off the North Korean government.

So does anyone have a light at the end of this tunnel look on the current situation in this region?

rawstory.com
(visit the link for the full news article)

reply to post by JacKatMtn

So does anyone have a light at the end of this tunnel look on the current situation in this region?

In my opinion, any conclusion is a good conclusion. The "threat" of constant violence is more damaging than the actual violence. Generations of people living in fear!

My light at the end of the tunnel goes like this:

During exercises several North Korean Subs are encountered in S. Korean Waters and are demanded to surrender. A fight ensues and their subs are destroyed. The N. Korean government begins a lengthy rhetoric about how powerful it is and US ships seize the opportunity to fire on the government headquarters killing the leaders. The people of N. Korea are fearful at first, but they soon realize that the dictorial government is without a leader and they can begin actually eating all the foreign aid coming into the country. China threatens retaliation and the US threatens to default on all of its junk bonds, so China backs down and agrees to help install a new government in N. Korea. The DMZ is taken down and trade can begin anew.

Maybe it won't go that smoothly, but as long as it ends in "Peace by superior firepower," then I will be happy!

[edit on 24-5-2010 by getreadyalready]

I hear this and something in the back of mind starts ringing.

Didn't Obama put a couple carriers on their way to that area on high alert status or something similar a couple weeks ago? Don't know if anything more has been heard on that, but it may play into this somewhat if it is true.

How about this scenario.....
The exercises go ahead with a carrier group and screening ships...
The subs are encountered and an aircraft carrier is sunk or badly disabled...
The Allies use their firepower on the N Ks and they in turn fire a tapodong sic nuclear missle at alaska knocking out a city there...
The chinese dont back down but instead go for twaiwan

Originally posted by stirling
How about this scenario.....
The exercises go ahead with a carrier group and screening ships...
The subs are encountered and an aircraft carrier is sunk or badly disabled...
The Allies use their firepower on the N Ks and they in turn fire a tapodong sic nuclear missle at alaska knocking out a city there...
The chinese dont back down but instead go for twaiwan

Well sure, if you wanna look at the other half of the glass?

In all honesty both scenarios are equally possible. This is a very volatile situation, and I feel our hands are tied. If we are an ally to S. Korea, we are obligated to respond to an unprovoked sinking with casualties.

I think China will be the coolest head in the bunch. They have the most to lose financially from a war with the US. They are the ones out on a limb, because it actually benefits us to default on those notes and debts. This area is also geographically much closer to China. They don't want a bunch of our warships stationed off that coast. Also, the N. Korean government has fallen out of favor with Chinese leadership every since the original nuclear talks went bad. China doesn't need a lose cannon threatening everybody and causing a stir.

I think the US does its mandatory response and N. Korea is either choked in by China or they do something stupid and get blown to hell and then China helps rebuild. I don't think it will escalate beyond that, but who knows? The potential is there, and it all rests on China's response in my opinion.

reply to post by JacKatMtn


Nice catch good sir. This is what I was waiting to see. I knew they couldn't hope to attack N Korea without massing troops and ships. I believe this is a cover for that and an unspoken threat.

North Korea's military seems to be geared toward ground warfare with not very much naval or air power. I think it would be relatively easy for the US and it's allies to gain air and naval supremacy over North Korea, and then deal with them at their leisure.

I have a feeling that North Korea will cease to have a navy in the near future.

I wonder if Kim will have the testicular fortitude to do anything after it happens. I guess we will find out soon enough.

reply to post by JacKatMtn

So does anyone have a light at the end of this tunnel look on the current situation in this region?

No, I can't see any light or any tunnel, just a black void off the edge of a cliff.

I don't know about you guys/gals, but I have a very bad feeling that a headline in the press over the next few weeks is going to read," US Sub Sinks Chinese Sub".

You know sometimes when you just have that bad bad feeling in your gut.....

Here we go again - OMG. Just what Kim has been waiting for and my thought is he has something up his sleeve that none of us know about.

^ Yep...

Whatever Nuclear Weaponary they have currently is locked and loaded.

Does anyone else think that the whole North Korea / United States / South Korea side-show is becoming rather childish at this point?

All of these "we'll show you who has more military muscle" is getting rather old in my opinion.

If North Korea really did sunk that ship, which frankly I am not at all convinced of, I would think that more decisive action would be taken rather than another drill. I'm not calling for war or anything -- but for a second think about the possibility that it really did go down like the official story.

If a foreign nation struck, sunk, and killed nearly 50 military, I should think sending a strong message of intolerance for such behavior would be the next logical step....

China and North Korea are not as cozy bed partners as they were during the Korean war. The Chinese economy and government has the most the lose by being drawn into a conflict, and quite frankly have demonstrated that they do not fully support the crazed Kim Jong-Il.

Yonhap Television News is on SBS tv early mornings here in Australia .Its in Korean so i cant understand what they are saying ,but from the pictures its all about NK and recent developments.Here is the link for those who want to see the news the Koreans are watching.
english.yonhapnews.co.kr...

Originally posted by JacKatMtn
When was the last time the US conducted anti-submarine exercises in the area?

To answer this part of your question only, I have been involved in US/South Korean anti-submarine exercises many times. I believe they occur once or twice a year, possibly even more often, with US naval forces out of Japan. We've conducted them mainly from the Korean Navy base at Pohang, but also from Osan. Coordinated exercises are not uncommon among all of the U.S.'s allies.

This seems to be a show of force.

US-South Korea joint naval exercise to increase pressure on North

Barack Obama ordered US forces to co-ordinate with their South Korea counterparts "to ensure readiness and to deter future aggression" by North Korea, a spokesman said.

It will no doubtingly raise the alarms of the North Koreans. They tend to get shaky when South Korea and US do joint exercises. It will be interesting to see what the response will be? They seem to be on the cusp of provoking the North into a fight by this exercise. I say that, because the announcement of the exercise being so close to the announcement of the findings about the sinking of the Cheonan being linked to North Korea.

Personally, I wish they could work this thing out, because war on the Peninsula gives me nightmares. I can only imagine what kind of carnage is in store for all involved? However, this seems to have been a long time coming. Apparently, for North Korea, their chickens have come home to roost? One can only shake a stick at a dog for so long until it become so aggravated it bites.

I am interested to find out how China really feels about this? They seem rather silent and cryptic about the whole thing at the moment. Apparently, the Chinese are well aware of what is going on inside North Korea? The snippet below is very telling about how China is taking this attack by North Korea on South Korea.

South Korea briefs China on ship sinking blamed on North

China irritated South Korea earlier this month by hosting the North Korean leader Kim Jong-il on a rare trip abroad before the outcome of the investigation was announced.

Is it just me, or was Kim giving a briefing to his Chinese masters about the sinking of this ship? Moreover, even more interesting, is that this meeting took place a month before the official announcement by the South Korean government on this situation. Now, what I think is going on in North Korea is a power vacuum and it has to do with Kim's succession? Since rumor has it, he is in failing health? In that scenario, the military, who has the most power next to the dictator may be gearing up for a power grab? What scares me more than Kim, is a despotic General getting his hands on that military machine, including the nuclear weapons, and actually using them. To me, Kim Jong Il, is a drama seeker and all talk. He will never do anything, because with any dictator he loves power. A full-scale war will threaten his rule and make things uncomfortable for Dear Leader.

His past outbursts have only been a feeble attempt at keeping his failing nation relevant on the world stage. The thing about this latest provocation, is that Kim may have lost sway with his military leadership and this attack was carried out by rogue elements in the armed forces. Perhaps, that recent visit by Kim was a warning by China? "If you don't get your affairs in order, we are going to intervene and occupy the country." Now, I know that assumption is way out there, but it makes sense if there is indeed a power struggle going on in North Korea. It is a threat to regional security, including China's. I find that meeting rather odd, and how close it was to the official announcement by the South Korean government about the North sinking their ship. What is China up too, and why so silent?



[edit on 24-5-2010 by Jakes51]

reply to post by bagari


HI there, i was looking up Osan to see which coast its on, couldnt find it. Is it west or east coast?

I think the upcoming excersises will be west coast, near(er) to the site of the incident.

I also think if they do go 'hot', DPRK will draw in the allied forces, and set off a pre-positioned, underground nuke.

They have been known to be fond of tunnels in the past.

[edit on 24-5-2010 by ErEhWoN]

Originally posted by stirling
How about this scenario.....
The exercises go ahead with a carrier group and screening ships...
The subs are encountered and an aircraft carrier is sunk or badly disabled...
The Allies use their firepower on the N Ks and they in turn fire a tapodong sic nuclear missle at alaska knocking out a city there...

North Korean missles cam reach the Aelutian Islands which are largely uninhabited. I doubt Kim would waste a nuke on a village of Inuits.

The chinese dont back down but instead go for twaiwan

Can you please explain how China got involved?

[edit on 5/24/2010 by clay2 baraka]

The North still denying the charges and issues further threats upon the announcement of an upcoming joint naval exercise involving the US and South Korea.

DPRK Warns Against South Korea's "Theory of Retaliation"


South Korea has been accused of engaging in a "theory of retaliation" and risking war in an editorial Tuesday by KCNA, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's (DPRK) official news agency.

South Korea has accused the DPRK of sinking its warship, the Cheonan, in March, and President Lee Myung-bak has called for sanctions against Pyongyang.

The KCNA editorial said Lee's proposal was based on retaliation and warned the South Korean moves would put the Korean Peninsula on the verge of war.

The editorial said the "theory of retaliation" was aimed at creating international pressure against the DPRK.

reply to post by JacKatMtn


I am suspicious of this whole thing.

Why would they do it, and then not take credit for it?

Why would they do it in the first place?

Is this a big setup to drag them into war? If so, why would we go to such an elaborate set up? They are constantly beating the war drums anyway, so it doesn't seem necessary to set them up like this. At the same time, with them constantly begging for war, why would they now backtrack and deny all involvement.

World Politics is a very very evil game!