US asked S. Korea and Japan to fly in formation after North Korean nuclear test

Posted on : 2016-10-19 16:35 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
South Korea declined show of “trilateral solidarity”, and the US’s push for more trilateral military cooperation
US B-1B strategic bombers escorted by South Korean F-15 fighter jets fly above South Korea on Sep. 21
US B-1B strategic bombers escorted by South Korean F-15 fighter jets fly above South Korea on Sep. 21

When the US flew B-1B strategic bombers over South Korea to demonstrate its commitment to “extended deterrence” shortly after North Korea’s fifth nuclear test in September, it made an unofficial proposal for military aircraft from South Korea, the US and Japan to fly in formation through South Korean airspace, Japanese media reported.

Since the American proposal was a request for South Korea to give the Japanese Self-Defense Forces access to the Korean Peninsula on the pretext of the North Korean nuclear threat, this is likely to spur debate about the intentions and timeframe of American plans to strengthen its trilateral alliance with South Korea and Japan.

Quoting sources in South Korea and the US, the Asahi Shimbun reported on Oct. 18 that when the US flew two B-1B bombers through South Korean airspace to send a message to North Korea on Sep. 13, it explored the idea of having aircrafts from the three countries fly in formation in order to show their “trilateral solidarity.” “The plan was not executed due to opposition from South Korea, which was concerned about popular sentiment,” the Japanese newspaper said.

The B-1B bombers, which took off from Andersen Air Force Base on Guam, were escorted by F-2 fighters from the Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) in the air above the Japanese island of Kyushu and by F-15 fighters from the South Korean air force above South Korean territory. The B-1Bs flew low in the area near the American air force base at Osan, making their presence known to the South Korean media. If South Korea had agreed to the American proposal, the JASDF F-2 fighters that had rendezvoused with the B-1B fighters above Kyushu would likely have entered South Korean airspace.

In a press release issued at the time, US Forces Korea (USFK) explained that the two B-1B strategic bombers had flown from Andersen Air Force Base in Guam through South Korean airspace on Sep. 13 in order to demonstrate the US’s firm commitment to protecting South Korea.

The South Korean government has responded delicately to this report. “My understanding is that there were no official deliberations between the US and South Korea in regard to Japanese military aircraft entering the Korean Air Defense Identification Zone (KADIZ) during the deployment of American strategic assets,” said Jeon Ha-gyu, head of public relations for South Korea’s Joint Chiefs of Staff. But this remark only denies that official deliberations took place between the two countries, and not the unofficial deliberations mentioned in the article.

This episode establishes with relative clarity that the trilateral alliance with South Korea and Japan as conceived by the US would involve giving the JSDF access to the Korean Peninsula. There has been continuing concern in South Korea that Japan might send troops to the Korean Peninsula while acting in collective self-defense during a crisis.

After this incident, the newspaper reported, Japan prevented South Korean F-15 fighters from passing through Japanese airspace on their way to participate in the Red Flag multinational aviation exercises taking place this month in the air above Alaska. The Japanese government’s view is that, in the interest of reciprocity, South Korean military aircraft cannot pass through Japanese airspace as long as South Korea is blocking JASDF aircraft from its territory. This suggests that Japan is taking a number of retaliatory measures against South Korea, which has put a hold on expanding military cooperation with Japan.

Japan has been putting various forms of pressure on South Korea to sign a bilateral information-sharing agreement (called the General Security of Military Information Agreement, or GSOMIA) during South Korean President Park Geun-hye’s visit to Japan, which is supposed to take place before the end of 2016, and likely in early December.

The remarks by South Korean government officials are also moving from pessimism about public opposition to optimism. When South Korean Foreign Minister Yun Byung-se met his Japanese counterpart Fumio Kishida in New York on Sep. 18, he expressed his “full agreement” to the need to strengthen military cooperation with Japan. During a hearing before the National Assembly on Oct. 14, South Korean Defense Minister Han Min-koo said that he was “adequately aware of the necessity of GSOMIA.”

By Gil Yun-hyung, Tokyo correspondent and Park Byong-su, senior staff writer

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