U.S. Space Force in Korea to Monitor Missile Threats in the Korean Peninsula
The third space force outside the US mainland, the USFK
Military dismisses possibility of incorporation into US missile defense system
[앵커]
The Space Force, which is in charge of missions such as missile surveillance using artificial satellites, has been established in the USFK.
This is the third time that a space force has been established outside the US mainland, and it is analyzed that the US has taken the North Korean missile threat seriously.
This is reporter Shin Joon-myeong.
[기자]
While USFK troops are lined up in front of the huge American flag,
The unit mark of the US Space Force in Korea engraved with ‘Dragon’, the guardian that always protects the North Star, has been unveiled.
USFK Commander Paul LaCamera announced the establishment of US Space Force Korea by delivering a Space Force flag engraved with the mark to the troops.
[폴 러캐머라 / 주한미군 사령관 : (주한 미 우주군은) 우리의 조국 방어 능력을 향상시키고 한반도와 동북아의 평화와 안전을 보장해야 합니다.]
The U.S. Department of Defense created the U.S. Space Force in 2019 by separating some forces from the Air Force.
The Space Force is the sixth military organization of the United States after the Army, Navy, Air Force, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard.
It performs missions such as global positioning system (GPS), satellite communication, and missile monitoring by integrating and utilizing various artificial satellites.
The U.S. Space Force in Korea was launched as a subordinate unit of the U.S. Indo-Pacific Space Command.
It monitors missile threats in the Korean Peninsula region, shares related information with the US mainland space force in real time, and supports the interception system to respond quickly.
[조슈아 맥컬리언 중령 / 주한 미 우주군 지휘관 : 우리의 우주 전투 능력은 적의 침략을 저지하는 데 도움이 될 것이며, 이는 공중, 육지, 바다, 사이버, 우주 영역에 걸친 전투력을 향상할 것입니다.]
The USFK is the third space force deployed by the US Space Force outside the homeland, following the Indo-Pacific Command and Central Command for the Middle East.
This is interpreted as the result of the United States’ serious recognition of North Korea’s nuclear and intercontinental ballistic missile threats.
[양욱 / 아산정책연구원 부연구위원 : 우주 활동을 통한 북한 감시와 견제의 중요성이 높아지면서 자연스럽게 우주 구성군 사령부의 창설도 빨라진 것으로 볼 수 있습니다.]
Although some claim that the establishment of the US Space Force in Korea is a step toward incorporating South Korea into the US missile defense system,
The military authorities dismissed the position as unchanged since they first announced that they would not be incorporated 20 years ago.
This is YTN Shin Joon-myung.
YTN Junmyeong Shin ([email protected])
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