US military bases in Pacific 'highly vulnerable' to N. Korean, Chinese missiles, drones: expert
WASHINGTON — U.S. military bases in South Korea, Japan and other countries in the Pacific are "highly vulnerable" to North Korean and Chinese missile and drone attacks, a U.S. expert has said, calling for efforts to strengthen air and missile defenses. Seth Jones, president of the Defense and Security Department at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), made the remarks in an…
U.S. military installations in South Korea, Japan and other Pacific nations are extremely susceptible to missile and drone assaults from North Korea and China, according to a prominent U.S. expert. In an op-ed published by The Wall Street Journal, Seth Jones, president of the Defense and Security Department at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS), urged efforts to bolster air and missile defenses.
Jones made his remarks in response to reports that the United States is running short on essential missile defense interceptors during the ongoing conflict in the Middle East. He pointed out that the rapid advancements in drone and missile warfare have compelled Ukraine and Russia to implement stringent measures to safeguard their bases since the full-scale war commenced in 2022.
However, Jones argued that the U.S. has been excessively tardy in assimilating the lessons learned from this war and fortifying its bases and infrastructure in the Middle East.
The situation in the Pacific is far more dire, Jones contended. China poses a more formidable threat than Iran, boasting a larger and more capable arsenal of drones, cruise, ballistic, and hypersonic missiles. U.S. military bases in the region are therefore significantly more vulnerable to such attacks.
Written by urgent.news from The Korea Times's reporting — not their text. Machine-written — it may contain errors, so check the original before relying on it.
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