U.S. Forces in South Korea Display PAC-3 Interceptor Batteries

U.S. forces in South Korea yesterday displayed new Patriot Advanced Capability 3 interceptor batteries about 50 miles south of the North Korean border, according to the Washington Times (see GSN, Sept. 16).

The U.S. military currently has four PAC-3 batteries and four PAC-2 batteries deployed in South Korea, the Times reported.  The PAC-3 battery can carry up to 16 interceptors, while a PAC-2 launcher can only carry four interceptors (Washington Times, Sept. 19).

North Korea yesterday criticized the PAC-3 upgrade, calling the move “preparations for pre-emptive strikes” against Pyongyang.

“If the United States wants to resolve the nuclear problem peacefully, it must stop the war preparations and change its hostile policy on the D.P.R.K.,” the North Korean state-run television said.  “The U.S. arms buildup in South Korea is creating a stumbling block to resolving the nuclear problem as it is dangerous war preparation to increase tensions on the Korean peninsula,” it said (Agence France-Presse/Yahoo!News, Sept. 19).

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U.S. Forces in South Korea Get Missile Defense Upgrades

U.S. forces in South Korea have received new equipment to upgrade Patriot missile interceptor batteries deployed there, the U.S. Eighth Army announced today (see GSN, June 10).

The new equipment will provide the 1-43 Air Defense Artillery Battalion with the Patriot Advanced Capability 3 interceptor, the Eighth Army said in a press release.  The upgraded interceptor, part of an $11 billion effort over the next several years to improve U.S. defensive capabilities in South Korea, will bring “enhanced defensive capabilities to the peninsula as well as contribute to the overall deterrence U.S. forces bring to the alliance,” the Army said (U.S. Eighth Army release, Sept. 16).

The new equipment was deployed in July, but was only announced today after troops operating the antimissile batteries completed their training (Reuters, Sept. 16).

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U.S. Air Force Criticizes Contractor Over Missile Detection Satellite

A senior U.S. Air Force official last month criticized defense contractor Northrop Grumman over poor handling of the Space Based Infrared System-High (SBIRS-High) satellite project, a planned component of the U.S. missile defense system, Bloomberg.com reported yesterday (see GSN, Dec. 20, 2002).

“Weak management oversight, inadequately designed test facilities and poor manufacturing discipline” have led to a 10-month delivery delay in the project, wrote Lt. Gen. Brian Arnold, commander of the Air Force Space and Missile Systems Command, in a Aug. 19 letter to Northrop Grumman President Ronald Sugar.  The SBIRS-High project is intended to provide a system satellites to detect and track missile launches.

“To be clear and concise, I am very concerned about your corporate commitment,” Arnold wrote.

A Northrop Grumman spokesman said the company is “confident” that is has the right personnel for the SBIRS-High project.

“We are confident that we have the right management and talent in place,” Northrop Grumman spokesman Frank Moore said (Tony Capaccio, Bloomberg.com, Sept. 15).

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Japan Could Strike First to Prevent North Korean Missile Attack

Japan would feel justified attacking North Korea pre-emptively if it detected an imminent missile attack, Defense Minister Shigeru Ishiba said in an interview reported by the London Independent today (see GSN, Sept. 10).

“The Japanese constitution permits my position.  Attacking North Korea after a missile attack on Japan is too late.  If North Korea orders its military to send a missile to attack Japan and the missile is raised to vertical in preparation for launch, then Japan will assume that an attack has begun and has the right to attack that particular missile launch site.  What else can the missile be used for but to attack us?” he said.

Ishiba has tested Japanese limits on discussing its defense options, according to the Independent, in part by publicly questioning whether Japan should change its prohibition on having offensive military capabilities (David McNeill, London Independent, Sept. 15).

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