The nuclear powered missile submarine USS Ohio is in Pusan for the 2008 Key Resolve and Foal Eagle exercises.
I believe that this is the first time an Ohio class submarine, which can also carry and launch Trident missiles, has docked in Korea, although the Ohio itself isn’t currently carrying any of the Tridents.
So far no reaction from up North.
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The Ohio, and three of her sister ships in the class, have been converted to SSGNs (a cruise missile platform). They’re no longer capable of carrying Trident SLBMs, but rather are now configured to carry up to 154 Tomahawk cruise missiles.
http://www.navy.mil/navydata/f.....0&ct=4
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/U.....SGN-726%29
North Korean paper had an article inferring that mr. Kim in light of China’s terrorital ambitions over North Korea is asking the S.K. for a peace treaty.
Rumour has it China has upwards of 70,000 troops waiting on the Yalu border, ready to rush in and claim as much of the peninsula as they can.
I thought this portion of the Navy article linked above was veeeery interesting:
“Each submarine has the capacity to host up to 66 SOF personnel at a time. Additional berthing was installed in the missile compartment to accommodate the added personnel and other measures have been taken to extend the amount of time that the SOF forces can spend deployed aboard the SSGNs. Two lock-out chambers (permanently fixed in the first two missile tubes) allow clandestine insertion and retrieval of SOF personnel. Both the Dry Deck Shelter and the Advanced SEAL Delivery System can mount atop the lockout chambers, greatly enhancing the SSGNs’ SOF capabilities.”
Yes, but does it have deck chairs? One needs comfort and convenience when mulling over all those rumours.
#3…..Can you tell me why China feels the need to invade North Korea?
#3, #6, The troops are to keep the Norks out of China, nothing more.
Territory and a united Korea is a huge threat to China.