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What the hell is N. Korea Doing????
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| occrider |
| quote: |
U.S. to protest North Korea's 'higher-level provocation'
Fighters flew within 50 feet of Air Force surveillance jet
From John King, Barbara Starr, Mike Mount and Andrea Koppel
CNN
Monday, March 3, 2003 Posted: 9:28 PM EST (0228 GMT)
WASHINGTON (CNN) -- The Bush administration plans to formally protest North Korea's actions during a weekend incident in which four North Korean jet fighters intercepted a U.S. surveillance plane over the Sea of Japan, officials said Monday.
The administration also said the incident could persuade China and Russia to be more open to U.S. requests to apply pressure on Pyongyang.
"As they look at the facts of what happened here, it will be hard for Russia and China not to conclude, 'OK, now North Korea has gone too far,'" a senior administration official told CNN.
Tension has been rising on the Korean Peninsula since North Korea disclosed in October that it had renewed efforts to develop nuclear weapons it swore off of in a 1994 agreement.
The official said the forum for lodging a formal protest had not been settled on, but that one possible method would be to communicate with North Korean diplomats at the United Nations. Japan and South Korea are being consulted on the best approach, that official and others said.
"There is no question this is a higher-level provocation than what we have been seeing," the senior official said. "This is a type of situation where one miscalculation and people lose their lives, and then there is the risk of some counter-response where more people can lose their lives."
U.S. military sources said Monday that the RC-135S surveillance aircraft was in international airspace about 150 miles [240 kilometers] off the Korean peninsula when four armed North Korean MiGs approached and flew alongside for 20 minutes, at some points coming within 50 feet of the U.S. plane. The Air Force plane returned to its base in Okinawa, Japan, without further incident.
One of the North Korean fighters locked its acquisition radar onto the RC-135S, a method used by fighter aircraft to locate another plane in the air, a Pentagon official said. At least two of the planes were MiG-29s. The two other fighters were thought to be MiG-23s.
Pentagon: Intercept took coordination
Pentagon officials say the encounter was obviously well-planned and premeditated because the MiGs have a relatively short range, so for them to fly 150 miles offshore, shadow the U.S. plane and still have fuel to get back would require a coordinated plan that pre-positioned the planes to make the intercept.
"This was obviously ordered by higher-ups," one Pentagon official said.
Pentagon officials were trying to interpret the North Koreans' action Monday.
One theory is that North Korea was trying to engage the United States in order to provoke a response, much as China did in April 2001, when one of its fighter jets collided with an American EP-3 spy plane over international waters.
"They saw what the Chinese did with the EP-3," one senior administration official said.
The North Korean incident was "very deliberate," according to that official.
"If they get the U.S. to fire on them, that's 'proof' an invasion is right around the corner," he said.
Whatever the motivation, U.S. officials agree that the incident shows Pyongyang is taking "bigger and bigger risks."
The RC-135S Cobra Ball aircraft is a modified version of the military C-135S cargo plane, which is based on Boeing's 707 commercial airliner. The aircraft are used to monitor areas where missiles are tested.
Last week, North Korea fired a short-range missile at sea during naval exercises, and Friday, Japanese newspapers reported that Pyongyang had tested a rocket booster for its Taepo Dong ballistic missiles at a launch site on the country's east coast in January.
In 1998, North Korea test-fired a missile that flew over Japan, raising tensions in the region.
Sunday's incident marked the first time in more than 30 years that North Korean aircraft have intercepted a U.S. plane, the sources said.
The previous interception occurred in 1969, when a North Korean fighter shot down a U.S. EC-121 reconnaissance aircraft over the Sea of Japan, killing more than 30 U.S. airmen, according to a Pentagon official. |
I just don't get it ... what are they trying to accomplish with this kind of provocation??? Only bad things can happen from risky moves such as this. |
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| Cyrus King |
I think they are trying to say that "you think you can bully the world.... well.. were going to bully you!"
Its more of a political statement to the world they are trying to make |
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| LiquidX |
| I think that N.Korea is trying to show the U.S. that they are not scared of the U.S. and their military machine.. :conf: |
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| shlomo_hamalech |
| I think the communist N. Koreans are about to start a fight they will lose, but bring down many with them!!!! |
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| occrider |
| quote: | Originally posted by Cyrus King
I think they are trying to say that "you think you can bully the world.... well.. were going to bully you!"
Its more of a political statement to the world they are trying to make |
No it's not a political statement ... you don't screw around with something like this. Not when it comes to military confrontations. It's very easy for things to go wrong and if they do that can lead to VERY disastrous circumstances. I gauruntee you this is not a solution to anything. And I doubt the koreans are trying to make a statement to the world ... the only ones they care about are themselves. This behaviour is reckless to the point of suicidal. Two countries with nuclear weapons do NOT engage in provocative military confrontations. If that plane had been shot down Bush will be FORCED to respond militarily. What are the N. Koreans gonna do when that happens? This is reminiscent of cold war tactics and it's plain stupid. |
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| shlomo_hamalech |
It's wierd but I agree with Occrider again!!!
The world is dangerous a new scale now!!! N. Korea is doing something a little scary, but as Occrider said, it looks like cold war style... The place and scenario is fresh though... so we will see what happens. This is definetly the wrong time for something like this to happen :P we have enough problems in this world already right now!!!!!
Shlomo Eliyahu |
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| montie |
| quote: | Originally posted by shlomo_hamalech
It's wierd but I agree with Occrider again!!!
The world is dangerous a new scale now!!! N. Korea is doing something a little scary, but as Occrider said, it looks like cold war style... The place and scenario is fresh though... so we will see what happens. This is definetly the wrong time for something like this to happen :P we have enough problems in this world already right now!!!!!
Shlomo Eliyahu |
It is the wrong time for this to happen, but it is happening because it is the wrong time.
N. Korea is taking advantage of the situation we are in with Iraq to start to flex it's muscle and try to push the US around.
A war with Korea would be absolutly horrible. |
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| Vanilla |
First off it was a spy plane. It's not like the US has the absolute RIGHT to control the world and expect their enemies to just follow along quietly. If you get caught spying, that's your up, not theirs.
Secondly, being a spy plane, it should have been flying high enough that it wouldnt have been intercepted anyway.
and Lastly, what's wrong with the surveilance satelites that the us has? Surely with the technology that can see anything as small as 12" why would the spy planes even be used anymore? Does the Us have to count how many bullets the Koreans have? |
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| montie |
| quote: | Originally posted by Vanilla
First off it was a spy plane. It's not like the US has the absolute RIGHT to control the world and expect their enemies to just follow along quietly. If you get caught spying, that's your up, not theirs.
Secondly, being a spy plane, it should have been flying high enough that it wouldnt have been intercepted anyway.
and Lastly, what's wrong with the surveilance satelites that the us has? Surely with the technology that can see anything as small as 12" why would the spy planes even be used anymore? Does the Us have to count how many bullets the Koreans have? |
The plane wasn't a high altitude spy plane.
In fact i think its just a modified cargo plain.
And it was flying over international waters. |
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| occrider |
| quote: | Originally posted by montie
The plane wasn't a high altitude spy plane.
In fact i think its just a modified cargo plain.
And it was flying over international waters. |
Correct. IT's a plane designed to pick up radio waves and communications. And the Koreans would have a right to do what it did if it was flying over Korean airspace. But it was over international waters. Korea can do whatever the hell it wants to do next to our borders as long as it's in international territory. |
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| shlomo_hamalech |
i can see why you guys would be angry with America for trying to be the world big brother.. But lets be honest, America won't just start blowing up countries it is not in its interest. America wants the world to be safe from problems so everyone can focus on money!
Thats the way it is... cause i mean the world doesn revolve around money no? I wish it revolved around kindness and good deeds... then everyone would be happy :)
SHLOMO |
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| Nige| |
| quote: | Originally posted by montie
The plane wasn't a high altitude spy plane.
In fact i think its just a modified cargo plain.
And it was flying over international waters. |
Incorrect, the plane WAS a spy plane, but was over international air space, therefore the U.S has every justification for it to be there. |
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