Alaska will be at the center of the response if the U.S. gets into a conflict with North Korea. That’s according to Alaska’s senior military officer: Lieutenant General Kenneth Wilsbach.
Wilsbach, the head of the Alaskan Command, addressed the Fairbanks Chamber of Commerce on May 23. In response to a question about the North Korean threat, Wilsbach highlighted Alaska’s strategic location.
”If you saw something untoward happen on the Korean Peninsula, this is gonna be a busy place,” Wilsbach said. “Not only to get people out of Korea — U.S. citizens out of Korea — but then U.S. forces will being flowing thorough here to go west.”
Wilsbach also addressed North Korea’s nuclear missile attack capability. He expressed concern about North Korea’s accelerated schedule of test launches, while assuring all test fires are tracked and assessed.
”Their capability of being able to reach the Continental United States, we’re not really sure that they have that,” Wilsbach said. “We’re not really sure they have the capability to reach into more than the Aleutians, but we’ll see.”
Wilsbach emphasized that diplomacy is the United State first course of action with North Korea, but that Alaska based forces are poised to respond, if needed — including with the missile defense system at Ft. Greely.
Wilsbach noted that the military is investing $500 million in Alaska this year, more than any other state.
Dan Bross is a reporter at KUAC in Fairbanks.
