By Ki Suh Jung
On April 17, South Korea’s Yonhap News Agency, and subsequently numerous Western media outlets, incorrectly reported that three US aircraft carriers would arrive in the waters off the Korean peninsula as a show of force in response to North Korean ballistic missile tests. But as of April 27, only USS Carl Vinson was trekking north towards Korea with no indication that the other two carriers—USS Ronald Reagan and USS Nimitz—would be joining USS Carl Vinson in the region. News outlets must be more diligent and vigilant in their reporting: such inaccuracies risk unnecessarily increasing already heightened tensions in the Korean peninsula and triggering unforeseen and dangerous responses from North Korea or its neighbors.
Fortunately, there is no indication that North Korea, China, or Russia reacted to the false reports. But tension around the Korean peninsula has already been heightened due to North Korea’s recent ballistic missile tests and the Pentagon’s subsequent deployment of the Carl Vinson Strike Group to the area. In response to the routine deployment, Pyongyang announced that it “will make the US fully accountable for the catastrophic consequences that may be brought about by its high-handed and outrageous acts.” Beijing and Moscow also reportedly placed their bomber aircrafts on “high alert” and increased troop presence on their respective borders with North Korea, actions they claimed were previously scheduled. Given that these three countries are nuclear states and have displayed increased aggression in recent years—North Korea’s weapons tests, China’s militarization of disputed islands in the South China Sea, and Russia’s invasion and annexation of Crimea—a single misinterpretation of the United States or its allies’ actions could throw the region into turmoil.
Multiple carrier strike groups operating together is not unprecedented, but it is noteworthy. In June 2016, USS John C. Stennis and USS Ronald Reagan conducted dual-carrier operations in the Philippine Sea, but the operations were scheduled and carried out in an area far from any disputed waters. The 1990-1991 Persian Gulf War is the most recent instance in which more than two carriers deployed concurrently in the same theater of operations: one nuclear aircraft carrier and five conventional aircraft carriers conducted airstrikes in Iraq. Given the rarity of multiple US aircraft carriers operating in the same area, any report stating so holds serious implications for all countries in the region.
This is not to say that the deployment of three aircraft carriers to the Korean theater is not within the realm of possibility. The decision would be made at the highest levels of the US government and signal that the United States is taking a wartime stance. While South Korea and North Korea are still technically at war—having signed an armistice rather than a peace treaty to end the Korean War—the peninsula has not seen major conflict for the last 60 years despite several skirmishes. If a Second Korean War were to occur, the US Department of Defense estimates that the conflict could result in up to one million South Korean and US military casualties, in addition to hundreds of thousands of civilian losses. If the North Korean regime believes that its survival is at stake, it may launch a preemptive attack on South Korea to inflict maximum damage to its enemies before its own demise. False reports of American military buildup can certainly play into North Korea’s calculation to initiate a major conflict.
Even as the international community reprimands, sanctions, or incentivizes North Korea every time it conducts a weapons test, military action against North Korea remains a last resort for the United States. Journalists and media organizations may be tempted to speculate or be the first to report breaking news, but they have the responsibility to first and foremost provide accurate information. Impartial news helps societies and their leaders make informed decisions; this critical ability is only possible with great effort and dedication by journalists. This duty is especially imperative in the hotbed that is the Korean peninsula. Fortunately, this recent instance did not cause escalation, but that may not be the case in the future. The stakes are too high for such mistakes.
Ki Suh Jung is an Asia-Pacific Fellow at Young Professionals in Foreign Policy (YPFP). He is also an officer in the US Navy, deployed in the Pacific. Ki Suh earned his BA in Economics and Government from Dartmouth College in 2011.