Show of might: Visitors watching a South Korea-US joint military drill at Seungjin Fire Training Field in Pocheon. — AFP
SEOUL: The United States deployed a nuclear-powered submarine capable of carrying about 150 Tomahawk missiles to South Korea a day after North Korea resumed missile tests in protest of the US-South Korean live-fire drills.
The USS Michigan’s arrival in South Korea, the first of its kind in six years, is part of a recent bilateral agreement on enhancing “regular visibility” of US strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula in response to North Korea’s advancing nuclear programme, according to South Korean officials.
With the deployment of the USS Michigan, the US and South Korean navies are to conduct drills on boosting their special operation capabilities and joint ability to cope with growing North Korean nuclear threats.
It said the US submarine arrived at the southeastern port city of Busan but didn’t say how long it would stay in South Korean waters.
The USS Michigan is one of the biggest submarines in the world. The Ohio-class guided-missile submarine can be armed with 150 Tomahawk missiles with a range of about 2,500km and is capable of launching special forces missions.
The South Korean and US militaries have been expanding their exercises in reaction to North Korea’s provocative run of missile tests since last year.
North Korea has argued it was forced to ramp up testing activities to deal with its rivals’ expanded military drills that it views as an invasion rehearsal, but experts say the North ultimately aims to modernise its arsenal and increase its leverage in eventual diplomacy.
On Thursday, North Korea fired two short-range ballistic missiles off its east coast, shortly after it vowed responses to the just-ended South Korea-US firing drills. — AP
