February 4, 2003	Tuesday	Zul Hijjah 2,1423

WASHINGTON, Feb 3: B-52 and B-1 bombers have been ordered to prepare to deploy to the western Pacific to back up US forces in South Korea as the US military mobilizes for war in the Gulf, a Pentagon official said on Monday.

Twelve B-52 bombers and an equal number of B-1 bombers were being prepared to move, the official said, adding that no decision had yet been taken to send them. The orders involve about 2,000 air force personnel, the official said.

They followed a request by the commander of US forces in the Pacific, Admiral Thomas Fargo, for additional forces to deter North Korea at a time when the United States is engaged in a showdown with Iraq, the official said.

“You always want to send the message: don’t underestimate us,” the official said, speaking on condition of anonymity. “So he (Fargo) came in with additional requests for forces which would show Korea that though we are focused on Iraq, don’t think this is the moment to do something.”

“Some forces have been put on ‘prepare to move,’ including the bombers and ISR (intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance),” the official said.

The official would not say what intelligence, surveillance or reconnaissance forces were tapped.

US defence officials report no unusual military preparations by North Korea, but there is mounting US concern over North Korean moves to revive its nuclear weapons programme.

Some US intelligence analysts have concluded that North Korea has begun moving fuel rods at its Yongbyon nuclear reactor complex, sharply raising the risks that Pyongyang is intent on producing nuclear weapons.

A special envoy of South Korea’s president-elect Roh Moo-Hyun held high level talks at the Pentagon Monday, kicking off a crucial mission to forge a common approach to the North Korea standoff, his aides said.

Chyung Dai-Chul, who also is to meet Secretary of State Colin Powell and hoped to see President George W. Bush during the three day visit, is carrying a letter from Roh calling for a peaceful solution to the nuclear standoff, Roh’s aides said.

Before leaving Seoul, Chyung said he would argue against imposing sanctions against North Korea.

Washington, on the other hand, has pushed for the issue to be taken up by the UN Security Council, which could impose sanctions. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) has decided to meet to discuss whether to refer the matter to the Security Council.

Over the past month US intelligence has watched the North Koreans take steps to reactivate its nuclear reactor complex at Yongbyon, officials said last week.

Trucks seen pulling up to a building housing cooling ponds for spent fuel rods have led some analysts to conclude that the North Koreans are moving them either into hiding or to a plutonium reprocessing facility.

US intelligence believes that the North Koreans can produce several nuclear weapons within several months once the Yongbyon facility is back in operation.

The White House so far has responded to the crisis through diplomacy. But as it builds up forces in the Gulf for a possible war with Iraq, the Pentagon has been studying what forces it needs in the region—AFP