U.S. launches ICBMs as warning against N. Korea

When South Korean President Park Geun-hye had a summit with her U.S. counterpart Barack Obama on Tuesday on the sideline of a G20 summit, the United States conducted a drill to launch the Minuteman III land-based intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM). The launch is interpreted as a warning against the North Korean provocations and an expression‎ of their support for the South Korea-U.S. leaders’ announcement of a plan to respond to North Korean provocations with any measure.

According to the U.S. Air Force on Wednesday, one Minuteman flew off the Vandenberg Air Force Base in California on Tuesday evening. The missile flew 20 times faster than the speed of sound before plunging into the waters near the Marshall Islands in the Pacific Ocean. The U.S. Air Force said the Minuteman III missile carried a mock warhead. A U.S. Air Force official said that the launch was conducted to test the missile’s accuracy and operability and confirm‎ its effectiveness in providing nuclear deterrent for the U.S. mainland and allies.

In February, the United States invited South Korean military officials to the Vandenberg Air Force Base to observe the test-launch of the Minuteman III for the first time. Then, the U.S. announced that it would defend South Korea with “all means” including the Minuteman III, which is one of the three main pillars of the U.S. nuclear umbrella together with the B-52 strategic bombers and nuclear submarines capable of sending up to three nuclear warheads to a location 13,000 kilometers away. The missile can strike the entire North Korea including Pyongyang, which is 9,360 kilometers away from the Vandenberg base.

U.S. President Barack Obama, who publicly mentioned a plan to deploy the Terminal High Altitude Area Defense (THAAD) system in South Korea for the first time during a South Korea-U.S. summit, reportedly plans to withdraw his “no first use” promise.

The New York Times cited multiple U.S. government officials as saying that Obama considered adopting the “no first use” nuclear doctrine to bolster his legacy as champion of a nuclear-free world, but is unlikely to forswear first use of nuclear weapons due to concerns among senior government officials. China and India declared such a principle in 1964 and 2003, respectively.

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