For the first time since the 1980s, a US Navy submarine equipped with nuclear-tipped ballistic missiles will arrive in South Korea to demonstrate Washington's determination to defend its ally against the threat from the Democratic People's Republic of Korea. According to Yonhap, the information was announced in a joint statement after a summit between US President Joe Biden and his South Korean counterpart Yoon Suk Yeol in Washington on April 26 (local time).
USS Alaska, an Ohio-class nuclear submarine of the US Navy
Historic agreement
The two leaders announced an agreement called the "Washington Joint Declaration," which focuses on strengthening deterrence against North Korea's nuclear and missile threats. According to Yonhap, strengthening deterrence means the US is committed to mobilizing the full range of military capabilities, including nuclear weapons, to defend its allies. The US will take more explicit deterrence measures, such as the regular deployment of strategic assets, including nuclear-powered ballistic missile submarines, to South Korea. However, the US side emphasized that those weapons will not be stationed permanently and that Washington has no plans to deploy tactical nuclear weapons on the Korean Peninsula.
President Yoon said the two countries agreed to establish a "Nuclear Consultative Group" to specifically manage the new deterrence system. The two sides will share information on nuclear operations and strategies, plan and hold regular discussions on how to carry out joint operations between South Korea's advanced non-nuclear forces and the US nuclear forces. In addition, President Biden also strongly warned Pyongyang that any nuclear attack by North Korea against the US, its allies or partners is "unacceptable and will lead to the end of the regime that carries out such an action." However, Mr. Biden said the US wants a substantive diplomatic breakthrough with North Korea to strengthen stability on the Korean Peninsula. Pyongyang did not immediately respond to the above developments, while the Chinese Foreign Ministry warned the US and South Korea against "provoking confrontation" with North Korea, calling on all parties to promote a peaceful settlement on the peninsula.
President Biden received President Yoon at the White House on April 26.
The unusual
Ballistic missile submarines rely on stealth and secrecy to ensure their survival and ability to launch a surprise nuclear missile strike in the event of war, so they rarely visit foreign ports. "A U.S. submarine visiting a South Korean port could put enormous pressure on North Korea, as it usually does not share the location of its submarines," retired South Korean submarine officer Moon Keun-sik told Reuters. Retired South Korean submarine captain Choi Il said a visit to a South Korean port would be unusual and symbolic, demonstrating a stronger deterrence against North Korea and reassuring South Korea.
The US Navy operates 14 nuclear ballistic missile submarines. Each Ohio-class submarine carries 20 Trident II D5 missiles, each with eight nuclear warheads that can hit targets up to 12,000 km away. However, according to AFP, Cheong Seong-chang, an expert at the Sejong Institute (South Korea), wondered whether Pyongyang was worried because the range was "too far" so it could not easily be launched from South Korean waters. Yang Moo-jin, an expert at the University of North Korean Studies in Seoul, also said that it was unlikely that North Korea would give up its nuclear weapons in the face of such deterrence.
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