On Monday, U.S. and South Korea launched a large scale joint air drill called Vigilant Ace.The air drill constituting 230 aircrafts including 6 F22 Raptor stealth fighters and F35 fighters. North Korea condemned the Vigilant Ace stating it as a provocation.
The South Korean military, in a statement, said, “Through the drill, the South Korean and U.S. air forces displayed the allies’ strong intent and ability to punish North Korea when threatened by nuclear weapons and missiles.” The Vigilant Ace bombers were dispatched from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam.
The Vigilant Ace is stated to send sent shivers down North Korean Leader Kim Jong Un’s spine creating tension. has provoked a bigger tension. Two Supersonic bombers flanked by American and South Korean fighter jets ripped through the skies above the Korean Peninsula.
The U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations Nikki Haley stated, “North Korea’s latest launch brought the world closer to war.”
A North Korean Spokesman said, “We do not wish for a war but shall not hide from it, and should the U.S. miscalculate our patience and light the fuse for a nuclear war, we will surely make the U.S. dearly pay the consequences with our mighty nuclear force which we have consistently strengthened.”
The Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov offered help to facilitate the U.S. and North Korea’s negotiations. “We know that North Korea wants above all to talk to the United States about guarantees for its security. We are ready to support that, we are ready to take part in facilitating such negotiations,” Lavrov said.
The Chinese Foreign Ministry Spokesman stated if a war outbreaks the ones that suffer the most are common people.
The former Deputy Commander of the U.S. forces in Korea Jan Marc Jouas wrote a letter to the Senate Democrats expressing his concerns about a potential war. General Jouas mentioned it would take days or months for reinforcements to reach the region. The 28,000 American troops and 492,000 South Korean troops will have to hold off the 1.2 million North Korean fighters.
“If North Korean troops advance quickly into major cities in the South much America’s air power would be negated for fear of killing civilians with strikes,” he stated. Jouas wrote they will not be able to build up forces prior to the start of hostilities as Kim Jong Un will preempt any attempt to do so with an attack of his own.
