US takes threats 'very seriously' as N. Korea goes on war footing
Source: AFP |
March 27, 2013, Wednesday
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THE US takes North Korea's latest threats to strike targets on the US mainland, Hawaii and Guam "very seriously," Pentagon spokesman George Little said yesterday.
"We are concerned by any threat raised by the North Koreans. We take everything they say and everything they do very seriously. They need to stop threatening peace - that doesn't help anyone," Little said.
Pyongyang's military put its "strategic" rocket units on a war footing yesterday, threatening South Korea as well as US targets. The military said units should be ready to attack "all US military bases in the Asia-Pacific region."
Little rejected what he called North Korea's "bellicose rhetoric," saying it followed a "well-known pattern designed to raise tensions and intimidate others."
"North Korea will achieve nothing by threats or provocations which will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to achieve peace and stability in northeast Asia," the spokesman said. "We stand ready to respond to any contingency."
Military tensions have been at an elevated level for months, following December's rocket launch and North Korea's third nuclear test, which it carried out last month.
Both events triggered UN sanctions that infuriated North Korea, which has spent the past month issuing increasingly threatening statements about unleashing an "all-out war" backed by nuclear weapons.
Ten days ago, the US said it would bolster its defenses against a possible North Korean missile strike, increasing by almost half the 30 interceptors already deployed along the California and Alaska coastlines. The aim is to have them in place by 2017. "The decision to place additional ground-based interceptors in Alaska is really in large measure to growing North Korean threats and the development of their own missile programs. It's very clear," Little said yesterday. "Let me be very clear that we stand ready to meet our obligations to defend the United States, South Korea and our alliance."
Meanwhile, Seoul's Defense Ministry said it hasn't seen any suspicious North Korean military activity and that officials were analyzing North Korea's warning. Analysts said a direct North Korean attack is extremely unlikely, especially during joint US-South Korean military drills that end on April 30, though there's some worry about a provocation after they end.
"We are concerned by any threat raised by the North Koreans. We take everything they say and everything they do very seriously. They need to stop threatening peace - that doesn't help anyone," Little said.
Pyongyang's military put its "strategic" rocket units on a war footing yesterday, threatening South Korea as well as US targets. The military said units should be ready to attack "all US military bases in the Asia-Pacific region."
Little rejected what he called North Korea's "bellicose rhetoric," saying it followed a "well-known pattern designed to raise tensions and intimidate others."
"North Korea will achieve nothing by threats or provocations which will only further isolate North Korea and undermine international efforts to achieve peace and stability in northeast Asia," the spokesman said. "We stand ready to respond to any contingency."
Military tensions have been at an elevated level for months, following December's rocket launch and North Korea's third nuclear test, which it carried out last month.
Both events triggered UN sanctions that infuriated North Korea, which has spent the past month issuing increasingly threatening statements about unleashing an "all-out war" backed by nuclear weapons.
Ten days ago, the US said it would bolster its defenses against a possible North Korean missile strike, increasing by almost half the 30 interceptors already deployed along the California and Alaska coastlines. The aim is to have them in place by 2017. "The decision to place additional ground-based interceptors in Alaska is really in large measure to growing North Korean threats and the development of their own missile programs. It's very clear," Little said yesterday. "Let me be very clear that we stand ready to meet our obligations to defend the United States, South Korea and our alliance."
Meanwhile, Seoul's Defense Ministry said it hasn't seen any suspicious North Korean military activity and that officials were analyzing North Korea's warning. Analysts said a direct North Korean attack is extremely unlikely, especially during joint US-South Korean military drills that end on April 30, though there's some worry about a provocation after they end.
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