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US Air Force bombers conduct mock drills off Korean Peninsula

A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer, assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, prepares to take off from Andersen AFB, Guam, Sept. 23, 2017. (U.S. Air Force photo/Staff Sgt. Joshua Smoot)
October 11, 2017

The U.S. Air Force on Tuesday night sent two B-1B bombers to conduct mock drills off both of South Korea’s coasts on the Korean Peninsula.

A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, during a 10-hour mission from Andersen Air Force Base, Guam, flying in the vicinity of Kyushu, Japan, the East China Sea, and the Korean peninsula, August 7, 2017 (HST). (U.S. Air Force photo/Airman 1st Class Gerald Willis)

The show of force during tense times comes despite North Korea threatening to shoot down U.S. bombers if it has to, after the country led by dictator Kim Jong Un claimed the U.S. declared war when President Donald Trump tweeted that North Korea “won’t be around much longer” if it keeps threatening the United States.

US bombers (Twitter)

This was a joint drill among the U.S. Air Force, Japan Air Self-Defense Force (JASDF) and Republic of Korea air force (ROKAF) units, and it was the first time U.S. Pacific Command B-1B Lancers have conducted combined training with JASDF and ROKAF fighters at night.

US bombers (Twitter)

According to U.S. Pacific Command:

Using Andersen Air Force Base, Guam as a power projection platform, two B-1B Lancers assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, flew a mission in the vicinity of the Sea of Japan, East Sea, making this the first time U.S. Pacific Command B-1B Lancers have conducted combined training with JASDF and ROKAF fighters at night.

“Flying and training at night with our allies in a safe, effective manner is an important capability shared between the U.S., Japan and the Republic of Korea and hones the tactical prowess of each nations’ aviators,” said U.S. Air Force Maj. Patrick Applegate, 613th Air Operation Center. “This is a clear demonstration of our ability to conduct seamless operations with all of our allies anytime anywhere.”

The recent mission, flown as part of U.S. Pacific Command’s Continuous Bomber Presence mission, demonstrates how U.S. military forces in the Indo-Asia-Pacific are always ready to defend the American homeland and how the U.S. stands resolutely with Japan and the ROK to honor their unshakeable alliance commitments to safeguard security and stability.

Continuous Bomber Presence missions ensure the U.S., along with key allies, have a credible capability to respond to a variety of levels and types of threats throughout the Indo-Asia-Pacific region. These actions are consistent with long-standing and well-known U.S. freedom of navigation policies that are applied to military operations around the world.

US bombers (Twitter)

The U.S. sent bombers in late September – the aircraft flew the farthest north of the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ) any U.S. bomber or fighter aircraft has been in the 21st Century.

A U.S. Air Force B-1B Lancer, assigned to the 37th Expeditionary Bomb Squadron, deployed from Ellsworth Air Force Base, South Dakota, receives fuel from a U.S. Air Force KC-135 Stratotanker Sep. 23, 2017. (Photo by Airman 1st Class Christopher Quail)

It was reported this week that President Trump is mulling a trip to the DMZ when he travels to South Korea next month.

The President recently shut down Secretary of State Rex Tillerson’s statements that the U.S. has an open line of communication with Pyongyang, and would hope to solve the conflict diplomatically. Trump alluded to the fact that his Administration and, most likely, the U.S. Military would be taking care of the situation on the Korean Peninsula.

Rhetoric has gone back and forth between the U.S. and North Korea all summer. Tensions can be cut with a knife, and the sometimes bizarre exchanges have left many Americans wondering exactly what is going to take place next.

Recent Rhetoric

September Sanctions

Sanctions against North Korea aim to impact the flow of cash to that country and cut off trade partners, as well.

The sanctions could also have contributed to the intensity of Kim Jon Un’s recent statements, as sanctions further and further alienate North Korea.

The sanctions against North Korea banned about 90 percent of North Korea’s exports, fully banning the country’s textile exports and reducing its oil and petroleum exports. The sanctions also banned the country’s overseas laborers, which provided nearly $500 million in revenue; and cut off all foreign investment with North Korea, its assets being frozen.

They were passed unanimously by the U.N. Security Council – with both China and Russia voting in favor – following North Korea’s sixth ever successful nuclear missile launch and claims that the country now has a Hydrogen bomb it can place on an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM).

North Korea recently launched yet another missile, on Sept. 14, this one an intermediate-range ballistic missile over Japan into the Pacific Ocean.

The North Korean launch came hours after North Korea threatened to blow the United States to “ashes and darkness” and has said it will “sink” the country of Japan, following a United Nations resolution that banned 90 percent of its exports. North Korea had promised the U.S. would “suffer the greatest pain it ever experienced in history” over the sanctions.

President Trump has said that the latest sanctions the United Nations imposed on North Korea are “not a big deal” compared to what might happen in the future.

August Sanctions

The United Nations in August also unanimously approved sanctions against North Korea in response to Kim Jong Un’s two successful intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) in July.

Then, North Korea threatened “thousands-fold” revenge on the United States following those sanctions, which cut North Korea’s export revenue by $1 billion, or about a third. The sanctions banned North Korea from exporting coal, iron, iron ore, lead, lead ore and seafood.

North Korea’s sixth nuclear missile test caused a 6.3 earthquake and was roughly five times as large as the bomb that destroyed Hiroshima, Japan. The test came hours after North Korean dictator Kim Jong-un claimed that it now had an H-bomb to put onto its long-range ICBMs.

U.S. Ambassador to the U.N. Nikki Haley has said that North Korea is “begging for war,” and that it’s time for the international community to impose the strongest possible sanctions against North Korea.

North Korea has come out slinging harsh words following U.N. Security Council sanctions that ban nearly all of its exports, saying this week that the U.S. faces “final ruin” it it goes to war with Kim Jong Un.