Page 4 - Admiral Locklear News Today : Breaking News, Live Updates & Top Stories | Vimarsana

So they are very concerned. i was fascinated by senator levin and indeed the admiral in charge of the pacific command, admiral locklear, who testified today, that they would not necessarily recommend shooting down a north korean missile unless it was aimed in anger and targeted either at the u.s. homeland or at allies like japan or south korea. that they wouldn't recommend shooting that down, because they are terribly afraid of miscalculation, and generating a wider conflict. they're worried also, because obviously the pressure is on south korea and the new president precisely because of what ...

Be a response. now, he didn't lay out what the options are, nor should he in public. but he did say very precisely, that this time it would be likely and expected there would be a response. frankly, i think it's obvious that the north koreans would face some kind of a response in the words of admiral locklear, and this time would not get off without that kind of response. it would be presumably proportionate in some way to what the attack is. we're not going to up the ante and have events spiral out of control, if we can help it. but north korea's not going to get off scott-free if they attack...

Know as much as soon. >> in this case, in the scenario we're in, we're possibly looking at being able to see it being in a general location and then to sense a launch. >> reporter: will north korea launch or stand down? locklear says it's hard to read kim jong-un. >> his father and grandfather always figured into their provocation cycle an off ramp of how to get out of it, and it's not clear to me that he has thought through how to get out of it. >> reporter: u.s. officials are working through the assumption that he will not issue a mariners warning. that's a warning don't be in this area at t...

A south korean island. so whether this is a test of a missile which is providing it's not targeted at south korea, the u.s., any of our allies, providing it is aimed at the water as a missile test, that's a very different deal than if it's targeted at us or our allies? >> what if it is that worst case scenario? is the u.s. ready to take military action against north korea? >> we are. our pacific commander today said that we are ready with a variety of responses for the south koreans or us to choose should there be an attack on south korea or on us, but it's also clear, he said, that we can sho...

At south korea or us, but also that we will act. and we are ready to act in some proportionate way to an attack by north korea. >> because as you well know, senator, in 2010 those two incidents you mentioned when north korea attacked positions in south korea including killing 46 south korean sailors aboard that warship, there was no retaliation from either south korea or the united states. what i hear you saying, this time there will be. >> this is what the admiral says and i believe that is true, and that is that the north koreans this time can expect that there will be a response. he didn't ...