US bombers fly close to North Korea in show of military strength
US BOMBERS and fighter escorts have flown to the farthest point north of the border between North and South Korea by any such American aircraft this century in a show of military might, the Pentagon said.
The mission in international airspace was said to show how seriously President Donald Trump takes North Korea’s “reckless behaviour”.
Defence Department spokesman Dana White said in a statement: “This mission is a demonstration of US resolve and a clear message that the president has many military options to defeat any threat.
“North Korea’s weapons programme is a grave threat to the Asia-Pacific region and the entire international community. We are prepared to use the full range of military capabilities to defend the US homeland and our allies.”
North Korea’s leader, Kim Jong Un, has said Mr Trump would “pay dearly” for threatening to “totally destroy” North Korea if the US was forced to defend itself or its allies against a North Korean attack. Kim’s foreign minister told reporters that the North’s response to Mr Trump “could be the most powerful detonation of an H-bomb in the Pacific”.
North Korea has said it intends to build a missile capable of striking all parts of the United States with a nuclear bomb. Mr Trump has said he will not allow it, although the US so far has not used military force to impede the North’s progress.
The Pentagon said B-1B bombers from Guam, along with F15C Eagle fighter escorts from Okinawa, Japan, flew in international airspace over waters east of North Korea on Saturday. The US characterised the flights as extending farther north of the Demilitarised Zone (DMZ), than any US fighter or bomber had gone off the North Korean coast in the 21st century.
On Thursday, Mr Trump announced more economic sanctions against the impoverished and isolated country, targeting foreign companies that deal with the North.
“North Korea’s nuclear weapons and missile development is a grave threat to peace and security in our world and it is unacceptable that others financially support this criminal, rogue regime,” Mr Trump said.