South Korea Says Will Take “Military Measures” Against Japanese Planes Within 3nm of SK Warships  

South Korea intends to keep painting "threatening" Japanese aircraft with illumination radar

Much like the Greeks and the Turks, just because these two both bow to Washington does not mean they’re allied *to one another other* 

South Korean government warning that military measures would be taken in cases where Japanese patrol aircraft fly near South Korean warships prompted the Japanese government to demand a retraction, it was reported on Apr. 22.

The dispute over measures to prevent a reoccurrence of military tension is pointing to a repeat of the conflict that erupted between the two sides in response to an incident in the East Sea on Dec. 20 involving the alleged use of tracking radar by the destroyer Gwanggaeto the Great and a threatening flyby by a Japanese patrol aircraft.

“On Jan. 23, we summoned a military officer from the Japanese Embassy in South Korea to inform them that we would issue warning communications prior to operating signal tracking and illumination radar (STIR) in the event that a Japanese patrol aircraft threatens one of our warships again with a flyby,” a Ministry of National Defense (MND) senior official said.

While the official gave no explanation on what would be considered a “flyby,” warning communications are reportedly issued in cases where Japanese patrol aircraft approach to within three nautical miles (around 5.5km) of a South Korean warship.

An image captured by the South Koreans of a low-altitude flyby by a Japanese patrol plane near a South Korean destroyer on Dec. 20.

“In our message to the Japanese military officer, we unambiguously demanded that Japan stop its threatening low-altitude flights and devise measures to prevent them from occurring again in the future,” the official said.

The Japanese government reportedly demanded a retraction of the warning, which it took as indicating that South Korean military could potentially aim fire control radar at its patrol aircraft. The “fire control radar” referred to by Japan is the equivalent of South Korea’s tracking radar. The Japanese Ministry of Defense (MOD) also reportedly demanded a retraction in closed-door working-level meetings with the MND on Apr. 10–11, but the MND simply reiterated its stance.

In an earlier piece titled “The South Korean Military’s New Guidelines: A Shadow on Security Cooperation,” Japan’s Yomiuri Shimbun newspaper previously reported that Seoul had “notified the Japanese government that it would direct fire control radar in cases where Japanese military aircraft approached to within three nautical miles of South Korean warships.”

“The guidelines in question were said to be applied to all countries apart from the US, and with South Korea-Japan relations souring, they appear to be measures taken by South Korea to emphasize its militant stance toward Japan,” the newspaper wrote.

The MND issued a response statement that said, “While it is true that we explained to Japan about our armed forces’ military measures and approach to prevent the possibility of unintended clashes on the seas between South Korea and Japan, it is not true that we informed Japan of a response manual including detailed operational procedures.”

At the same time, the ministry expressed “dismay at [Japan] disclosing information that was supposed to remain undisclosed.”

Previously, Japan claimed that the South Korean Navy destroyer Gwanggaeto the Great aimed fire control radar at a Japanese patrol aircraft during the vessel’s rescue of a North Korean ship in the East Sea on Dec. 20.

In response, the MND alleged that the aircraft had engaged in a threatening flyby and subsequently amended its response guidelines.

The new guidelines reportedly included more sternly worded warning communications in cases where foreign patrol aircraft enter within a specific distance of South Korean warships, as well as plans for weapons system operation and the mobilization of Lynx helicopters used on the vessels for submarine search efforts.

Source: Hankyoreh

4 Comments
  1. JustPassingThrough says

    China must really be laughing at this not to mention North Korea.
    Japan and South Korea facing off.
    Two flyweights.
    You can’t make this stuff up.
    Send in Bacon-butt and Bolthead to make corrections.

  2. David Bedford says

    That will teach those damn Japs LOL

  3. CHUCKMAN says

    People forget how vicious was Japan’s occupation of Korea in WWII.

    In addition to everything else, the Japanese literally kidnapped great numbers of Korean women to serve as “comfort women” [read: involuntary brothel inmates] for their troops in various locations.

    Japan has never even apologized for that absolutely barbaric behavior.

    Many hostilities remain between these states.

  4. Natural_Texan says

    Nothing will happen the S. Korean and Japanese governments both kowtow to the US occupation. Really has Japanese occupation of (south) Korea in fact ended? When the US occupied Japan and Korea after WWII it left the Japanese-influenced occupation government in Seoul in charge, never actually freeing Korea… In the view of some this was foundational to the north/south split. And the compliant S. Korean and Japanese governments will not buck Uncle (deep pockets) Sam.. no matter what the citizens say.

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