SEOUL, South Korea — The United States deployed a nuclear-powered submarine capable of carrying about 150 Tomahawk missiles to South Korea on Friday, June 16, 2023, a day after North Korea resumed missile tests in protest of the U.S.-South Korean live-fire drills.
The USS Michigan’s arrival in South Korea, the first of its kind in six years, is part of a recent bilateral agreement on enhancing “regular visibility” of U.S. strategic assets to the Korean Peninsula in response to North Korea’s advancing nuclear program, according to South Korean officials.
With the deployment of the USS Michigan, the U.S. and South Korean navies are to conduct drills on boosting their special operation capabilities and joint ability to cope with growing North Korean nuclear threats, the South Korean Defense Ministry said in a statement.
It said the U.S. submarine arrived at the southeastern port city of Busan but didn’t say how long it would stay in South Korean waters.
The USS Michigan is one of the biggest submarines in the world.
The Ohio-class guided-missile submarine can be armed with 150 Tomahawk missiles with a range of about 2,500 kilometers and is capable of launching special forces missions, according to the South Korean statement. (Ap)