by WorldTribune Staff, December 3, 2017
Five days after North Korea carried out its latest test of an ICBM, the U.S. and South Korea on Dec. 3 began massive joint war games seen as a rehearsal for a full-scale war with Pyongyang.
U.S. President Donald Trump warned he would “take care” of North Korea following its Nov. 28 test of the Hwasong-15 ICBM.
On the eve of the five-day Vigilant Ace exercise, North Korea called the U.S. and South Korea “warmongers” and said the drills could “lead to a nuclear war.”
North Korea’s comments came after U.S. national security adviser H.R McMaster warned Saturday of the “increasing” possibility of war against the Kim Jong-Un regime with each passing day.
Meanwhile, a warning siren rang across Hawaii on Dec. 1 in what the state’s governor called an effort to prepare residents and tourists for a possible nuclear attack by North Korea. It was the first time the siren was used since the end of the Cold War.
“We believe that it is imperative that we be prepared for every disaster, and in today’s world, that includes a nuclear attack,” Gov. David Ige said, adding that the possibility of a strike is remote.
If a missile is launched, Hawaii’s residents and tourists would have less than 20 minutes to take shelter, officials said.
The Vigilant Ace drill will involve 12,000 U.S. troops and airmen and at least 4,000 South Korean troops as well as some 230 aircraft, including U.S. F-35 Lightning IIs and F-22 Raptor stealth jet fighters. Both fighter jets outmatch anything in Kim Jong-Un’s arsenal.
North Korea’s state-run Rodong Sinmun newspaper called the exercise “an open, all-out provocation against the DPRK, which may lead to a nuclear war any moment. The US and South Korean puppet warmongers would be well advised to bear in mind that their DPRK-targeted military drill will be as foolish as an act precipitating their self-destruction.”
North Korea proclaimed that the Hwasong-15 was capable of hitting anywhere in the U.S.
Some U.S. officials have said the Hwasong-15 test on Nov. 28 may have actually been a failure.
It has been reported the U.S. believes the missile may have broken into pieces on its descent back to Earth. U.S. forces and their allies are studying the crash site in the Sea of Japan, looking for remnants of the missile for examination.
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