The United States flew a B-1B long-range bomber over the Korean Peninsula on Wednesday for its first precision-guided bombing exercise with South Korea in seven years, the South said Wednesday.
The exercise – seen as a show of force against North Korea – comes as tensions rise following recent nuclear missile launches by the North. waste balloons towards South Korea and other provocations.
Wednesday’s training involved other advanced U.S. and South Korean fighter jets as well as the B-1B aircraft, the second U.S. bomber temporarily deployed over the Korean Peninsula this year. The exercise aimed to demonstrate the United States’ security commitment to South Korea and strengthen the allies’ common defense posture, according to the South Korean Defense Ministry, which released images of the exercise on social networks.
During the training, the B-1B dropped joint direct attack munitions while being escorted by South Korean aircraft, the first such bombing exercise for a U.S. bomber since 2017, according to a statement from the ministry.
/PA
South Korean warplanes also conducted live-fire exercises to demonstrate that the country is prepared to punish North Korea if provoked.
JDAM bombs include “bunker busters”. JDAM is a guidance system that converts conventional unguided bombs into more precise GPS-guided weapons. All U.S. fighter jets, bombers, and drones can use JDAMs, and these munitions are part of the weapons systems the United States has supplied to its customers. Ukraine to help him fight against the Russian invasion.
North Korea is extremely sensitive to exercises using bunker busting bombs, which could threaten its leadership and its complex network of tunnels and underground military structures. North Korea has already responded to flights of powerful U.S. aircraft into South Korea with its own missile tests.
A B-1B is capable of carrying a large payload of conventional weapons. North Korea has already called the bomber deployment evidence of U.S. hostility.
Last month, South Korea’s Defense Ministry released an image of a U.S. Marine Corps F-35B stealth fighter performing a maneuver over Kunsan Air Base during a joint exercise .
“This exercise reinforced our confidence in our ability to decisively defeat any adversary with an overwhelming response to provocations,” Maj. Kim Seong-jun, an F-35A pilot from the Republic of Korea, said in a statement at the time.
Last week, North Korea hundreds of huge balloons floated to dump manure, cigarette butts, scraps of fabric and used batteries across South Korea. In response, South Korea said it was “unbearable.” retaliatory measures and suspended a fragile military deal aimed at reducing tensions with North Korea, restoring its frontline military activities.
The suspension of the 2018 inter-Korean agreement allows South Korea to resume live-fire exercises or broadcasts of anti-North Korean propaganda via loudspeakers in border areas. Such moves will likely prompt North Korea to take provocative steps in response.
Recently, North Korea launched a rocket in an attempt to place a second spy satellite into orbit, in violation of UN resolutions, but it exploded shortly after takeoff. He also tested nuclear capable weapons for an exercise simulating a preemptive strike against South Korea and allegedly jammed GPS navigation signals in South Korea.
North Korea sends its first military reconnaissance satellite in orbit in November last year, as part of efforts to build a space-based surveillance network to address what it calls growing U.S.-led military threats. North Korean leader Kim Jong Un later told a ruling party meeting that his country would launch three more military spy satellites in 2024.
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