Military leaders: North nuclear weapons can hit U.S.

By Tong Kim

WASHINGTON ― U.S. combatant commanders responsible for deterring North Korea's nuclear and missile threats believe the North has advanced its technology and is capable of delivering a nuclear weapon to American soil.

Testifying Thursday before the Senate Armed Services Committee, Gen. Curtis M. Scaparrotti, commander of the U.S. Forces Korea, and Adm. Samuel J. Locklear, commander of the U.S. Pacific Command, said they are taking steps to maintain a sustainable and interoperable ballistic missile defense to respond to threats from unpredictable North Korea's increasing capabilities.

The two commanders agreed with a recent assessment from Adm. Bill Gortney, commander of NORAD and the U.S. Northern Command, which is responsible for defending the homeland from missile attack, that the North Korean mobile launcher KN-08 can carry a nuclear weapon as far as the United States and is operational, albeit that the system has never been tested.

The South Korean defense ministry last week downplayed Gortney's claims as an unofficial assessment of the U.S. government. However, no U.S. government source has refuted his statement.

In answer to a question by Sen. John McCain, Republican chairman of the committee, Scaparrotti said: "I believe they (the North Koreans) have had time and capability to miniaturize a nuclear warhead. They have stated that they had intercontinental missile(s) and they had a nuclear capability, and they paraded it. As a commander, I think, we must assume that they have that capability."

Locklear agreed with Scaparrotti's assessment, adding, "We have not seen them effectively tested, but from all indications, we are preparing to take actions to protect the homeland," in cooperation with South Korea and Japan.

Although the submitted written statements by the witnesses did not mention the prospect of THAAD deployment on the Korean Peninsula, Scaparrotti, who is also commander of the Combined Forces Command in Korea, said the THAAD would be helpful in defending his forces from North Korean ballistic missiles. He said, "A decision process is under way right now," regarding its deployment.

Due to the evolving ballistic missile threat, Scaparrotti said, "It is critical for the (U.S.-Korea) alliance to build a layered and interoperable BMD (ballistic missile defense) capability." He also pointed out that South Korea "is moving forward in the development of its KAMD (Korea Air and Missile Defense) and Kill Chain (pre-emptive strike system)."

He said his top concern is, "that we could have very little warning of a North Korean asymmetric provocation which could start a cycle of action and counteraction, leading to unintended escalation."

The committee hearing lasted more than two hours in review of the 2016 defense budget.

The senators' questions were mostly focused on North Korean threats, the administration's rebalance in the Asia Pacific, China's rise and the uneasy security environment in the South China Sea, where China has recently been preparing a strategic military base. Trilateral cooperation among the U.S., South Korea and Japan, and their information sharing, was also discussed.

Asked about whether the U.S. can avoid the "Thucydides Trap," a warning by Harvard Professor Graham Allison in 2012 that a rising China and the ruling U.S. may go to war, as China will challenge and change the order put in place by others, Admiral Locklear said such a military conflict is "not inevitable."

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