Washington – President Donald Trump issued a familiar warning to North Korea on Tuesday, saying the US is prepared to use “devastating” military action if necessary — as two US defense officials tell CNN that the rogue nation has moved a small number of fighter jets, external fuel tanks and air-to-air missiles to a base on its eastern coast to boost military readiness.
The officials would not go beyond saying a small number of assets had been moved by the regime to a known airfield in the eastern part of the country.
The move was seen in US satellite imagery and is viewed by the US as a North Korean effort to boost its military readiness in the eastern sector. It would give the aircraft an ability to fly eastward further than its estimated 900-mile range.
Imagery so far has observed Mig-29 aircraft at the site. Some missiles and fuel tanks are on the planes, but for now, no single jet is carrying both the external fuel tanks and the missiles.
On Monday, the North Korean regime has threatened to shoot down US aircraft flying off its coastline even if they are in international airspace.
Both defense officials said that the US maintains sufficient aerial surveillance and radar capability in the region to know if any military aircraft take off from North Korea.
Trump also responded to North Korea’s threat to shoot down US aircraft on Tuesday.
Speaking alongside Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy, Trump reiterated that the US is “totally prepared” if they have to use the military option, saying military action in North Korea would be “devastating.”
“If we take that option it will be devastating — devastating — for North Korea,” Trump said in the Rose Garden during a news conference. “It’s called the military option.”
“He’s acting very badly,” Trump said of North Korea’s leader Kim Jong Un. “He’s saying things that should never ever be said.”
Trump said the US was responding to Kim’s provocations, but insisted his replies were merely in response to rhetoric from Pyongyang. He also decried the situation there, saying he was left a “mess” by previous administrations.
“I’ll fix the mess,” Trump said. “We’ll see what happens.”
As reported by CNN