From the beginning of the new year, the western Pacific Ocean is receiving a lot of attention. There is a lot of rhetoric about “the sea is getting hotter” here and there. First of all, the tension in the Taiwan Strait is as close as the territorial dispute in the South China Sea and the war on navigation. The level of attention is inevitably high, as even North Korea is moving in and out of dangerous levels.
The US Navy recently released a press release. On the 15th local time, the Ohio-class submarine USS Nevada (SSBN-733) with an underwater displacement of 18,000 tons was anchored in Arpa Port in the Guam base in the western Pacific Ocean, along with photos.
The Ohio-class is a strategic nuclear submarine capable of launching nuclear missiles. It is very rare for a strategic nuclear submarine to disclose its location. These weapon systems are strategic tools used for political purposes. It’s leverage. CNN’s commentary. It is said that the Ohio-class port of call to Guam is the first in six years since 2016, and it is the second time since the 1980s that the fact of the call has been made public.
It’s very unusual. There is an unusual energy, but there is another reason why this case seems extraordinary.
Aerial command and control device related to nuclear commandAn aircraft track captured by the aircraft positioning system ADS-B. It’s a special mission aircraft. It is the ‘E-6B Mercury’ that serves as an air commander for nuclear missile operation.
Regarding Mercury’s mission, let’s take a look at the KODEF Military Aircraft Yearbook.
“Its main task is to receive orders from the National Supreme Commander (NCA), which are issued from the command center on the ground or in the air, and transmit them to ballistic missile submarines in the ocean as VLF (ultra-long wave).”
When an order to launch a nuclear missile is issued, it receives it and tosses it to a strategic nuclear submarine. In volleyball, it serves as a setter. When the command between the launch control center and the remote missile launch facility is disabled, the E-6B Mercury immediately takes command and control. therefore ‘Judgment Day, Heaven’s Controller’It has a nickname.
The fact that even Mercury was deployed together is interpreted as a message that the Ohio-class deployment is nothing more than a simple power and trial, and that it should be viewed as in practice.
Yesterday, the US Naval Research Institute (USNI), a prestigious US naval research institute, released photos of three nuclear-powered aircraft carriers (nuclear carriers) and two amphibious assault ships operating in the western Pacific and East Asian seas, including the East China Sea and the South China Sea. How is it. Can’t you feel the tension in the waters surrounding the Korean Peninsula, Japan, and Taiwan?
The three nuclear carriers are the Ronald Reagan of the US 7th Fleet, the Carl Vinson of the 3rd Fleet, and the Abraham Lincoln. The amphibious assault ships are the Americas and the two Essex. Since the amphibious assault ship is the United States, it is not classified as such, and in fact, it can be regarded as a light carrier class.
There is a case where three ships floated in this sea. From November 2017 to January 2018, North Korea’s mid-range missile provocation reached its peak. However, this scale is extraordinary.
What is the reason for releasing such a terrifying power? On the surface, it reads for a combination of China and North Korea.
In order to support the balance of power in the Taiwan Strait and to put pressure on North Korea’s missile provocations and nuclear tests, it is observed that the decapitation operation will be deployed whenever possible, and the training details will be disclosed sequentially to increase the level of pressure.
In addition, there is an interpretation that the Ohio class, which has more than 100 warheads, was deployed to the Western Pacific, and that the disclosure of it sends a message that it will restrict the actions of the People’s Liberation Army deployed in Manchuria in case of a sudden change. There will also be a side effect of getting cold water from the impending Winter Olympics in Beijing.
At the same time, it appears that the calculations were made to complicate the calculation of Russia’s deployment of forces in case of a Russian invasion of Ukraine. This is because, in a situation where the political situation in the Far East is unstable, if you hold the ankle of the forces that have been withdrawn to the Black Sea or that will be moved forward, it could have a considerable effect on the decision of the Russian leadership to open war.
A fierce battle is unfolding around the Korean Peninsula. The 2022 presidential election is six weeks away. This election is different from the last 30 years. It will be held in a time of upheaval in the international order and security landscape, in which the US and China are engaged in a new Cold War over technological hegemony penetrating the era of the 4th industrial revolution along with the task of overcoming the corona virus. The new leader of the country must shoulder the heavy responsibility of navigating these domestic and international challenges. The time of important choices is approaching.
※Four feet= Strategic nuclear submarines such as the Ohio-class perform strategic missions that ensure mutually assured destruction. From the standpoint of the enemy who preemptively strikes with nuclear weapons, it is impossible to preemptively strike without subduing this submarine. The ‘Hunter Killer’ is a submarine that carries out the mission of hunting strategic nuclear submarines. The USS Hampton (SSN-767) is a hunter-killer submarine built for stealth and agile maneuvers underwater.
In the spring of 2011, while working in Hong Kong, I once boarded the USS Hampton. It was an event to reveal the inside of the submarine to which only two media companies representing the US, UK and Hong Kong were invited. Correspondents from Japan, Australia, Taiwan, India or Singapore who were stationed in Hong Kong at the time were not invited. I vividly remember the officer who was guiding me sneakily showing the Tomahawk missile spear.
At that time, the JoongAng Ilbo covered two sides and treated it as a cool photo article. After the sinking of the Cheonan and the shelling of Yeonpyeong Island, there is a clear message to North Korea that a South Korean correspondent will participate in the Hunter Killer public event held abroad amidst the unstable political environment around the Korean Peninsula. It is because of the effect of recognizing Korea’s status as an ally and the solidity of the ROK-US alliance.
The international order is being reorganized. A difficult task awaits the next president, which is to strengthen relations with the public while forging alliances. As a member of the community, the responsibility of one vote comes with a heavy burden.
