園田義明めも。

そういえば官邸周辺が慌ただしい。
外交・安全保障チームの議員宿舎泊り込み状態が続いている。
北朝鮮で何か大きな動きでもあるのか。


＜関連記事＞

U.S. Forces Spy on North Korea
By David AxeMay 28, 2012
http://the-diplomat.com/flashpoints-blog/2012/05/28/u-s-commandos-spy-on-north-korea/

U.S. Special Forces have been parachuting into North Korea to spy on Pyongyang’s extensive network of underground military facilities. That surprising disclosure, by a top U.S. commando officer, is a reminder of America’s continuing involvement in the “cold war” on the Korean peninsula – and of North Korea’s extensive preparations for the conflict turning hot.

In the decades since the end of the Korean War, Pyongyang has constructed thousands of tunnels, Army Brig. Gen. Neil Tolley, commander of U.S. Special Operations Forces in South Korea, said at a conference in Florida last week. Tolley said the tunnels include 20 partially subterranean airfields, thousands of underground artillery positions and at least four tunnels underneath the Demilitarized Zone separating the two Koreas. “We don’t know how many we don't know about,” Tolley said.

“The entire tunnel infrastructure is hidden from our satellites,” Tolley added. “So we send [Republic of Korea] soldiers and U.S. soldiers to the North to do special reconnaissance.” Tolley said the commandos parachute in with minimal supplies in order to watch the tunnels without being detected themselves.

Tolley outlined new equipment he said would boost the spies’ capabilities without giving them away to North Korean troops. For starters, he said his men could use a lightweight sensor able to “characterize what’s in a facility from standoff distance.” In addition, the commandos would benefit from a high frequency radio whose signal can’t be tracked back to its origin. Finally – and most dramatically – Tolley said a wireless power transmission system would allow his troops to jump into North Korea without heavy loads of batteries for their radios and other gear.



US special forces on the ground in North Korea, says American commander
By Carlo Munoz - 05/28/12 03:42 PM ET
http://thehill.com/blogs/defcon-hill/army/229737-us-special-forces-on-the-ground-in-north-korea-says-american-commander

Members of U.S. special forces are on the ground in North Korea, gathering intelligence on the country's network of clandestine military bases near its border with the South.

Brig. Gen. Neil Tolley, head of all American special operations forces in South Korea, said units of elite U.S. troops were conducting "special reconnaissance" missions in the North.

Elite troops have been dropped behind North Korean lines to pinpoint the specific locations of Pyongyang's vast network of underground military bases, Tolley said during a speech at a Special Operations Forces Industry Conference in Tampa last Tuesday.

Tolley's comments on the American deployments in North Korea were first reported on Monday by The Diplomat, a Japan-based foreign affairs magazine.

American commandos have identified hundreds of underground munitions facilities, along with thousands of subterranean artillery positions, linked by a complex network of underground tunnels that run up to the demilitarized zone that separates North and South Korea, Tolley said.

Until now, U.S. and western intelligence had not been able to verify the existence of the tunnel network, since the complex had been hidden from spy satellites that continually survey the country.

"There were four tunnels under the [demilitarized zone]. Those are the ones we know about," Tolley said, according to reports in the Tampa Tribune.

The one-star general's comments came days after news broke that American special forces were also on the ground in Yemen.

Those troops are providing intelligence and logistics support to the Yemeni military's ongoing offensive to drive al Qaeda's local cell, known as Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), from their positions in the southern part of the country.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta told reporters on May 10 that no American troops would be sent to Yemen as part of that country's counterterrorism operations.

Last Tuesday, DOD spokesman George Little said the U.S. special forces units in Yemen were part of an American-led advise and assist mission supporting the Yemeni military.

When asked if the U.S. role in Yemen could expand beyond intelligence and logistical support, Little replied that the United States has a "very strong military relationship with Yemen [and] that relationship is focused . . . on jointly addressing the counterterrorism threat" posed by AQAP.



US, South Korean special forces parachuted into North Korea to spy on underground tunnels
From: AFP May 29, 2012 9:00AM Increase Text SizeDecrease Text SizePrintEmail
http://www.theaustralian.com.au/news/world/us-south-korean-special-forces-parachuted-into-north-korea-to-spy-on-underground-tunnels/story-e6frg6so-1226370993691

SPECIAL forces from the US and South Korea have been parachuting into North Korea to gather intelligence about underground military installations, a US officer says.

US Army Brigadier General Neil Tolley, commander of US special forces in South Korea, has told a conference held in Florida last week that Pyongyang had built thousands of tunnels since the Korean war, The Diplomat reported.

"The entire tunnel infrastructure is hidden from our satellites," General Tolley said, according to The Diplomat, a current affairs magazine.

"So we send (South Korean) soldiers and US soldiers to the North to do special reconnaissance."

"After 50 years, we still don't know much about the capability and full extent" of the underground facilities," he said, in comments reported by the National Defence Industrial Association's magazine on its website.

General Tolley said the commandos were sent in with minimal equipment to facilitate their movements and minimise the risk of detection by North Korean forces.

At least four of the tunnels built by Pyongyang go under the Demilitarised Zone separating North and South Korea, General Tolley said.

"We don't know how many we don't know about," he admitted.

Among the facilities identified are 20 air fields that are partially underground, and thousands of artillery positions.

In February, South Korea's Yonhap news agency reported that had built at least two new tunnels at a nuclear testing site, likely in preparation for a new test.

AFP