The Sinking of the Cheonan

This column originally appeared in the Williston Observer on June 3, 2010. This version is slightly different from the published version.

The Sinking of the Cheonan

Just after 9:00 p.m. local time, on March 26, 2010, the sailors on the South Korean Navy corvette Cmheonan were thown into a mariner's nightmare. An explosion rocked the ship, and split it in two. The stern sank within minutes, according to the ship's captain. Of the 104 members aboard, only 58 were pulled from the sea. 46 are unaccounted for and are assumed drowned.

After weeks of rescue operations, the focus shifted to salvage and investigation. Portions of the hull of the Cheonan were visible above water, as the seas were only 130 feet deep at the site of the incident. By the end of April, both halves of the Cheonan had been recovered from the sea floor and were taken to a South Korean naval base for examination.

Speculation at the time of the tragedy was rampant, but experts said that only two causes were probable. Either an internal explosion, the result of an accident, fire, or some other incident on board; or an external explosion, the result of some kind of attack.

The Cheonan was operating within its territorial waters as declared by the United Nations. North Korea, however, considers the waters to belong to them. If the explosion was external, the North was the obvious suspect in an attack.

Within a day of the raising of both halves of the boat, the South Korean defense minister said that the cause of the splitting of the Cheonan was a "bubble jet," an extraordinary change in pressure that was strong enough to split the boat in half. Such a bubble jet can be caused by a proximate but non-contact explosion, as from a torpedo.

On May 20, an international commission consisting of Koreans, Americans, British, Swedes, and Australians, released a report on the sinking of the Cheonan. The report's conclusion was unequivocal:

"The [commission] assesses that a strong underwater explosion generated by the detonation of a homing torpedo below and to the left of the gas turbine room caused Cheonan to split apart and sink."

The evidence is highly technical in nature, and I don't purport to understand it all, but it convinced the experts. Some parts of the evidence I understand quite well: torpedo parts mixed in with the wreckage of the Cheonan. Though the Cheonan herself carried torpedoes, the parts included marks that were consistent with other North Korean-made torpedoes previously obtained by the allies.

North Korea, however, is not quite so convinced.

According to North Korea's official English-language news site, the commission's report is "foolish and fabricated." It called the Cheonan sailors traitors, and condemned the entire South Korean Navy as a "puppet navy." North Korea warned against any punishment for the sinking of the Cheonan, threatening "all-out war" if such measures are taken.

The bellicose blustering of the North is to be expected. Whether the attack on the South Korean ship was deliberate (the result of an order from on-high or an act of aggression by a lone captain) or an accident, it seems par for the course that North Korea would deny any involvement. The phrase "Thou dost protest too much" comes to mind.

American Secretary of State Hillary Clinton condemned the attack by the North as "provocative" and said that the actions will have consequences. Though she failed to elaborate much further, she noted that "business as usual" could not continue.

Liberals are generally regarded as doves, but if this past Memorial Day is a reminder of nothing else, it must be that Americans of all kinds serve and have served — men, women, all races, colors, religious beliefs, sexual orientations, and political leanings. I think it is fair to say that no one of these groupings loves peace or is willing to fight to defend freedom more than any other.

Given that, it should be no surprise that President Obama's administration is willing to meet North Korea's tough talk with tough talk of its own. Our commitment to the freedom of the South Korean people should not be questioned, because through every administration since the armistice treaty was signed, our military has had a strong presence in South Korea.

By remaining firm in our resolve, and by using diplomacy (both public and secret), I hope that the North will own up to its responsibility. If it does not, and it provokes a fight, the South Koreans can rest assured that the United States will stand by them, up to and including war. It isn't what we want, but it is what we will do.