If North Korea uses its own weapons, President Joe Biden and his South Korean colleague Yoon Suk Yeol warned, there would be a nuclear reaction and the “end” of the North Korean government.
The two leaders said the US security umbrella for South Korea was being tightened in response to the nuclear-armed North’s provocative missile testing in a speech at the White House after Oval Office discussions during just the second state visit so far under the Biden administration.
And they made it quite plain that a catastrophic reaction would be given if the isolated communist regime in North Korea attacked either the South or the United States.
At a joint news conference with Yoon, Biden said, “A nuclear attack by North Korea against the United States or its allies…will result in the end of whatever regime were to take such an action.”
The aim, according to Yoon, was to achieve peace via “superiority of overwhelming forces and not a false peace based on the goodwill of the other side.”
He said that Washington and Seoul had pledged to “respond swiftly, overwhelmingly, and decisively using the full force of the alliance, including US nuclear weapons,” in the event of a nuclear assault by North Korea.
Yoon and his wife Kim Keon Hee arrived at the White House for a day of pomp and circumstance, as hundreds of people gathered outside. In the storied East Room, a magnificent state banquet was scheduled to conclude the festivities.
‘WASHINGTON DECLARATION’
The Washington Declaration, which Yoon and Biden released, strengthened the US nuclear shield over South Korea, which is becoming more concerned about the saber rattling in the north.
“President Biden has reaffirmed his ironclad commitment to extended deterrence towards the Republic of Korea,” Yoon said.
Despite the fact that US commanders will still have complete authority over the nuclear weapons, this will include a system for the two nations to exchange information and discuss in the case of a North Korean assault. Additionally, the conventional military of South Korea and the nuclear forces of the US will be increasingly integrated.
Under the condition of anonymity, a senior US official characterized the new setup as a return to tactics used most recently when Washington handled the defense of Europe against the Soviet Union.
Since the peak of the Cold War, when we had a small number of close friends in Europe, the US hasn’t actually performed these actions. And we want to make sure that our commitment to extended deterrence is unequivocal by implementing these additional processes and actions, the person added.
Under the condition of anonymity, US officials emphasized that there are no plans to post nuclear weapons in South Korea, which contrasts with the Cold War, when US strategic weapons were stationed in Europe.
Seoul also reaffirmed in the agreement its promise not to build its own nuclear weapons.
NUCLEAR SUB
Initial moves, according to the US source, would involve “regular deployment of strategic assets, including a US nuclear ballistic submarine visit to South Korea, which has not happened since the early 1980s.”
The person stressed that there would be “no basing of those assets and certainly not nuclear weapons,” but that there will be a “regular cadence” of other significant platforms, “including bombers or aircraft carriers,” in addition to submarines.
According to a US official, preparations are being made to ease possible tensions with Beijing over the more aggressive military stance.
According to the individual, the Biden administration is “disappointed that China has been unprepared to use its influence” on North Korea. “We are briefing the Chinese in advance and laying out very clearly our rationale for why we are taking these steps,” the official added.
On Thursday, Yoon will speak to a joint session of Congress and have lunch with Antony Blinken, secretary of state, and Kamala Harris, vice president of the United States. He will go to Boston on Friday to see MIT and Harvard before flying home on Saturday.
The Korean conflict Memorial, which showcases life-size steel sculptures of US troops marching during the 1950–1953 conflict against the communist north, was visited by Yoon and Biden on Tuesday.
Yoon also went with Harris on a visit of a NASA facility close to Washington and lay a wreath at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Arlington National Cemetery.
