'Storm clouds gathering' over Korean Peninsula, says Jim Mattis

Without forecasting a conflict, Mattis emphasized that diplomacy stands the best chance of preventing a war if America's words are backed up by strong and prepared armed forces.

Fort Bragg (US), December 23: "Storm clouds are gathering" over the Korean Peninsula, Defense Secretary Jim Mattis declared on Saturday. And as diplomats try to resolve the nuclear standoff, he told soldiers that the US military must do its part by being ready for war.

Without forecasting a conflict, Mattis emphasized that diplomacy stands the best chance of preventing a war if America's words are backed up by strong and prepared armed forces.

"My fine young soldiers, the only way our diplomats can speak with authority and be believed is if you're ready to go," Mattis told several dozen soldiers and airmen at the 82nd Airborne Division's Hall of Heroes, his last stop on a two-day pre-holiday tour of bases to greet troops.

Mattis' comments came as the UN Security Council unanimously approved tough new sanctions against North Korea, compelling nations to sharply reduce their sales of oil to the reclusive country and send home all North Korean expatriate workers within two years.

Such workers are seen as a key source of revenue for North Korean leader Kim Jong Un's cash- strapped government. President Donald Trump and other top U.S. officials have made repeated threats about U.S. military action.

Some officials have described the messaging as twofold in purpose: to pressure North Korea to enter into negotiations on getting rid of its nuclear arsenal, and to motivate key regional powers China and Russia to put more pressure on Pyongyang so a war is averted. For the military, the focus has been on ensuring soldiers are ready should the call come.

At Fort Bragg, Mattis recommended the troops read T.R. Fehrenbach's military classic "This Kind of War: A Study in Unpreparedness," first published in 1963, a decade after the Korean War ended.

"Knowing what went wrong the last time around is as important as knowing your own testing so that you're forewarned - you know what I'm driving at here," he said as soldiers listened in silence. "So you gotta be ready."

The US has nearly 28,000 troops permanently stationed in South Korea, but if war came, many thousands more would be needed for a wide range of missions, including ground combat.

The retired Marine Corps general fielded questions on many topics in his meetings with troops at Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba and Naval Station Mayport in Florida on Thursday and at Camp Lejeune and Fort Bragg in North Carolina today. North Korea seemed uppermost on troops' minds as they and their families wonder whether war looms.

PTI