US deploys nuclear-capable bombers with South Korea after Kim Jong-un’s sister issues fresh threats
The United States deployed nuclear bombers and stealth jets for joint exercises with South Korea on Tuesday after North Korean dictator Kim Yo-jong’s sister made new threats.
The exercises took place near the Korean peninsula after Yo-jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, mocked her misgivings about her country’s military and threatened a test of intercontinental full-range ballistic missiles.
Yo-jong, the younger sister of the North Korean Supreme Leader, used a slew of disparaging terms — such as “dog barking,” “nonsense,” and “malicious contempt” when she questioned outside assessments that cast doubt on the spy’s spy. North Korea, beware. development of satellites and long-range missiles.
South Korea’s defense ministry said the deployment of US B-52 bombers and the F-22 stealth fighter was part of an agreement to protect South Korea by all available means, including nuclear. The exercises also included F-35 and F-15 fighter jets from South Korea that took place in the waters southwest of Jeju Island.
On Tuesday, Kim Jong-un’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, used a slew of disparaging terms — such as “dog barking,” “nonsense” and malicious disparagement — when she dismissed outside assessments that cast doubt on the development of North Korea’s spy satellites and long-range missiles
The US F-22 jets were deployed to South Korea for the first time in four years and will remain this week for training with South Korean troops, it said.
The exercises were held after North Korea claimed to have launched a test satellite for the development of its first military spy satellite and tested a solid-fuel engine for use on a more mobile intercontinental ballistic missile in recent days.
North Korea has already fired a record number of missiles this year in a warning of previous US and South Korean military exercises it considers an invasion rehearsal. There are concerns that it will respond to the latest air training by the Allies with another round of missile tests.
On Sunday, North Korea said its missile launches were tests of systems for its first military reconnaissance satellite and released two low-resolution photos of South Korean cities as seen from space.
Some civilian experts in South Korea and elsewhere said the photos were too crude for surveillance purposes and that the launches were likely a cover for North Korea’s missile technology.
The South Korean military maintained North Korea fired two medium-range missiles.
Yo-jong said the test satellite carried a commercial camera because there was no reason to use an expensive high-resolution camera for a single-shot test. She said North Korea used two old rockets as space launch vehicles.
“Don’t they think their assessments are too inadequate and careless as they only commented on our capacity for satellite development and related preparations with two photos we published in our newspaper,” said Kim Yo Jong, a senior ruling Workers’ Party official , said in a statement to state media.
A spy satellite was one of the high-tech weapons systems Kim Jong-un promised to acquire to better deal with what he called US hostility.
Multi-warhead missiles, long-range solid-fuel missiles, underwater-launched nuclear missiles, nuclear-powered submarines and hypersonic missiles are additional weapons Kim plans to build.
Some experts say that North Korea will eventually use such modern weapon systems and an extensive nuclear arsenal to pressure the US to obtain sanctions and other concessions.
Kim’s sister dismissed the South Korean government’s assessment that North Korea still has major technological hurdles to overcome for functioning ICBMs to reach the US mainland – such as the ability to protect its nuclear warheads from the harsh conditions of atmospheric reentry .
She wondered how North Korea could have received data from nuclear warheads until they landed on target areas in the ocean on previous launches if the country really had no reentry technology.
“I think it’s better for them to stop talking nonsense, behave carefully and think twice,” she said.
South Korea’s defense ministry said the deployment of US B-52 bombers and the F-22 stealth fighter was part of an agreement to protect South Korea by all available means, including nuclear. The exercises also included F-35 and F-15 fighter jets from South Korea that took place in the waters southwest of Jeju Island.
The exercises took place near the Korean peninsula after Jong, the influential sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong-un, mocked doubts about her country’s military and threatened an intercontinental ballistic missile test with a fully range.
The US F-22 jets were deployed to South Korea for the first time in four years and will remain this week for training with South Korean forces, the ministry said.
Photo of a fighter jet that took part in the air exercises that took place near the Korean Peninsula
Kim Yo-jong is Kim Jong-un’s younger sister and a senior official of the Workers’ Party of Korea. In 2007, she joined the Workers’ Party of Korea (WPK) and served as secretariat for her father, Kim Jong-il, until his death in 2011.
Whether North Korea has a reliable arsenal of nuclear-armed missiles is a source of debate. But North Korea has repeatedly argued that it has tested missiles that can reach the US and its allies have confirmed that warheads can survive atmospheric reentry and other challenges.
All of North Korea’s ICBM tests have been conducted at a steep angle to avoid neighboring countries. Some experts have said that without the launch of standard trajectory ICBMs, the reliability of North Korean weapons cannot be guaranteed.
Addressing those doubts, Jong suggested that North Korea could fire an ICBM on a normal trajectory, a launch that could be seen as a much bigger provocation to the US since the weapon would fly to the Pacific.
“I can dispel their doubts about this. They will recognize it immediately in case we launch an ICBM to fire directly from an angle,” Jong said.
Kim Yo-jong, whose official title is deputy department director at the Central Committee of the Workers’ Party, is considered the North’s most influential official after her brother, according to South Korea’s spy agency.
Lim Soosuk, a spokesman for South Korea’s foreign ministry, called her threats of a standard trajectory ICBM launch “deeply regrettable.” He told reporters that North Korea’s nuclear ambitions would only deepen its international isolation and exacerbate the economic problems of its residents.
North Korea is one of the most heavily sanctioned countries in the world for its nuclear and missile programs. But Kim Yo Jong said on Tuesday that North Korea is determined to strengthen its defenses at all costs.
“We make it clear that we will not remain a passive spectator to attempts to violate the legitimate law of a sovereign state, but will exercise our bound rights and retake them if necessary at the risk of our own lives,” she said.
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