hankyoreh

Dec. 17. (Press photo pool)

By Kwon Hyuk-chul, Staff Writer

The North Korean military threatened Friday that it would launch self-defense attacks after South Korean military authorities announced South Korean Marines on Yeonpyeong Island would restart live-fire drills on a day with clear weather between Dec. 18 and 21. Accordingly, concerns about a military clash are heightening.

In a message sent in the name of the head of the North Korean delegation to inter-Korean military talks, North Korea warned that if South Korea pushes ahead with its drills on Yeonpyeong Island despite its advanced warning, North Korea would carry out unpredictable second and third self-defensive strikes to protect its territorial waters. The message warned that the attacks would be more serious in terms of strength and scope than the artillery attack launched on Nov. 23, when North Korea shelled Yeonpyeong Island.

South Korean military authorities, however, decided not to respond to the message, judging that it was not worth responding to each of North Korea’s threats. They said they plan to respond resolutely in order not to get caught up in North Korea’s scheme to cause internal chaos in South Korea.

South Korea’s K-9 self-propelled artillery, 105mm light howitzers, Vulcan guns and 81mm mortars will participate in the drill, covered by KF-16s and F-15Ks, the mainstays of the Korean Air Force. Military authorities stress the drill will take place on a “clear weather day” as nearby naval and air assets must be put on standby in the event of a situation such as a North Korean attack, but if the weather is bad, the aircraft cannot fly. If the concern arises that North Korea will launch an artillery strike in response as it did on Nov. 23, a limited firefight will likely develop. Pertaining to this, it is worth nothing that the U.S. military, as part of the United Nations Command Military Armistice Commission, has decided to participated in this drill as observers, while simultaneously deploying about 20 soldiers to give command, communication and medical support. The objective of this is believed to be both to support the South Korean military in case of a North Korean attack while preventing an escalation.

The Yeonpyeong Island drill will reportedly begin at around 10 a.m. on the day it is ordered. Some 60 percent of the guns on the island will participate, firing in a southwest direction. The remaining 40 percent will be aimed at North Korea’s coastal artillery positions in preparation for a contingency.

Prior to the drill, KF-16s from Haemi Air Base in Seosan, South Chungcheong Province and F-15Ks from Daegu Air Base will patrol the skies around Yeonpyeong Island. South Korean military authorities plan to launch precision strikes with F-15Ks against North Korean coastal artillery positions if North Korea carries out an artillery attack on Yeonpyeong Island. Prior to restarting the maritime live-fire drills, South Korean military authorities reinforced their military personnel on the Five West Coast Islands. On Yeonpyeong Island, they boosted the number of K-9 self-propelled artillery pieces from six to 12, and have deployed upgraded counter battery radar. They have also carried out an emergency deployment of Multiple Launch Rocket Systems (MLRS) and Cheonma surface-to-air missiles capable of reaching North Korean aircraft.

Unlike the military bases, where there was a sense of tension thanks to the preparations for the drill, the civilian area of the island was quiet, as most of the 1,400 civilians had left the island. The doors of most of the houses were locked or blocked with furniture, while the houses that were destroyed in the first attack remained just as they were. The heavy silence twisted around Yeonpyeong Island was sometimes broken by the groans of fishermen whose can no longer make a living, and the sound of fork cranes building temporary shelters.

There were some, too, who have returned despite the restart of drills as they could no longer deal with living in a jjimjilbang, bath house, in Incheon, their temporary shelter. A Mr. Kim, 69, who had returned to the island, said Friday there was no better alternative and living in the jjimjilbang was too uncomfortable. With resignation, he said regardless of whether they restart the drills or not, it was better just to live on Yeonpyeong Island comfortably.

As of Friday, there were exactly 200 people on Yeonpyeong Island, including 84 government employees and 116 civilians.

Meanwhile, U.S. State Department spokesman Philip Crowley indicated support for the drill at a regular briefing Thursday (local time), saying, “A country has every right to train and exercise its military in its own self-defense.”

However, James Cartwright, vice chairman of the U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff, said, “What we worry about obviously is ... if North Korea were to react to that in a negative way and fire back at those firing positions on the islands, that would start potentially a chain reaction.” Cartwright added, “What you do not want to have happen out of that is for ... us to lose control of the escalation. That’s the concern.”

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