The DPRK is simply a "strange flower" among the countries of the world.
It is a unique combination of a unique political system, a closed social system, and a staggering family of leaders, and although it is poorly known to the outside world, it is inexplicably and frequently active in the public eye.
It is said that the people there have to pray to the leaders before eating, and their leaders are even more unpredictable.
He always wants to single-handedly confront the forces of countries around the world, especially the United States.
The friction between these two countries has never stopped, and no country has ever turned a deaf ear to any remarks, actions, and sanctions imposed by the United States like North Korea, and North Korea has always gone its own way.
No, on April 15, 1969, the birthday of their "great leader" Kim Il Sung, the North Korean people and the North Korean military presented Kim Il Sung with a great gift, and they shot down an American early warning plane without warning, causing an uproar around the world, and actually received no retaliation afterwards.
April 15, 1969, was supposed to be a day for US military pilots to carry out reconnaissance missions leisurely.
Because not so long ago, the US Navy updated its equipment with EC-121M reconnaissance aircraft.
This reconnaissance aircraft is equipped with a highly automated modern electronic equipment system, which can monitor, intercept and analyze communications, radar, and other signals, and is capable of generating electronic interference.
Not only that, but the reconnaissance aircraft has an ultra-long range and long flight time, capable of reconnoitring targets at long distances.
And the use of low-speed flight and low-altitude flight mode is conducive to concealment and evasion of enemy radar detection.
It can be said that equipping such fighters to carry out reconnaissance missions was an easy task at that time when the United States and the Soviet Union were competing for arms hegemony and the military situation was tense.
The danger is small, take a turn in the airspace of various countries, pat the ** and you can go back, but what the US pilot did not expect was that less than 200 kilometers away from the east coast of North Korea, he actually encountered two Korean People's Army Air Force MiG-21 fighters.
In fact, if you want to say that you have encountered it, you have encountered it, because at that time, under the political situation in which the Soviet Union was in decline and the United States was dominant, all countries turned a blind eye to the US reconnaissance operations, and who did not want to rashly offend the United States, which was the most powerful country in the world.
But apparently the North Korean military has different brain circuits than others.
First of all, from the point of view of the DPRK, which has strong nationalism, the appearance of US AWACS aircraft in the airspace near the DPRK has seriously violated the territorial sovereignty of the DPRK and is a serious military provocation against the DPRK.
In fact, North Korea has always been very sensitive to the overflight of US AWACS aircraft and regarded it as a threat.
At that time, North Korea** had repeatedly stated that they believed that the US military action was aimed at undermining North Korea's sovereignty and security.
However, due to the gap in technology and equipment, it is actually very difficult for the DPRK military to detect the US military's reconnaissance and early warning planes, and this is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.
Of course, some people believe that because the radar equipment and flight control systems in the DPRK region are not as advanced as those in developed countries, it is possible that the AWACS aircraft may be mistaken for an enemy fighter plane that has intruded into the airspace of the DPRK.
In such a situation, the North Korean authorities may quickly take strike measures to avoid being perceived as weak.
On the other hand, April 15, 1969 is the birthday of Kim Il-sung, the "great leader" of North Korea, who enjoys a very high status and prestige in the history of North Korea, and is respected as "the eternal president of the republic" and "the eternal leader of Juche Korea".
At this juncture, the North Korean military discovered the US early warning aircraft, and it is difficult not to be regarded as providential by the "feudal superstition" North Korean people.
The DPRK military resolutely ordered the US plane to shoot down without any warning, and since this EC-121M reconnaissance plane only carried out reconnaissance missions and had no combat missions, it naturally did not have the slightest strength to fight back.
As a result, it was shot down by North Korean warplanes over the Sea of Japan southeast of Cheongjin City, North Hamgyong Province, North Korea, and all 31 crew members died.
Perhaps the flight personnel on the plane did not understand until they died, how the DPRK dared to shoot down its own fighter plane, and was this not a declaration of war against the United States?
An even more unexpected thing is still to come: After the DPRK shot down the US fighter plane, it did not have any communication with the US side and directly announced the news on the Korean People's Radio
For a while, the crowd boiled and shouted Long live North Korea! It can only be said that it is indeed relieved and courageous, but it is true that the consequences are not considered.
The United States and the military, who learned of this, were naturally shocked, and they did not expect the tiny North Korea to provoke themselves so much.
This incident has aroused great concern and severe condemnation from the United States.
Richard Nixon and Henry Kissinger, an adviser to the United States, immediately decided to retaliate with air strikes in response to the provocations of the North Korean side.
Other Nixon advisers, however, feared that such an approach would provoke a larger conflict and draw the United States into a broader war.
Therefore, they oppose the operation of air strikes and look for other ways to solve this problem.
In order to express his condemnation to North Korea and protect his own interests and security, Nixon adopted a series of diplomatic measures to deal with the matter.
They submitted a resolution to the UN Security Council calling for condemnation of North Korea's actions and enacted a series of sanctions, including an embargo on North Korea and the suspension of aid programs
In addition, the United States has sent ** and aircraft to the region to demonstrate its military strength to contain the North Korean threat.
Between April 19 and 26, 1969, Task Force 71 of the Seventh Fleet, which included four aircraft carriers and their escort ships, conducted operations off the east coast of North Korea to demonstrate military strength to deter North Korea's behavior.
However, the U.S. military's response ended there, and instead of taking any further attack measures against North Korea, it made the matter as if it were its own fault and strengthened its own security measures.
In future intelligence flights, the United States has indeed taken a series of measures to strengthen the safety of intelligence flights to ensure that similar incidents do not happen again.
First of all, the United States has strengthened its escort forces for intelligence flights.
Beginning in 1969, each intelligence flight team was escorted by four armed F-4 Phantom II fighters.
These fighters use state-of-the-art electronic jamming equipment and missile systems that can effectively combat any enemy fighter that tries to attack intelligence flights.
Secondly, the United States has stepped up reconnaissance and surveillance of intelligence flights.
Since then, the United States has sent a large number of reconnaissance planes and spy satellites to North Korea's airspace to collect intelligence information about the North Korean military and equipment.
These measures have effectively improved the safety of intelligence flights and prevented the recurrence of similar incidents.
However, this is all an afterthought, and the way the United States handles it at this moment has aroused strong dissatisfaction among the American people.
The United States explained that it did not take military action because it did not want to provoke a larger crisis in the region, which is undergoing tremendous transformation
At that time, with the exception of the Vietnam War, the entire Asia-Pacific region was very tense.
Therefore, the United States** believes that taking military action could exacerbate this tension and further provoke crises and conflicts.
In addition, the United States** also said that taking military action could lead to more soldiers** and losses, making the Vietnam War more complicated and dangerous.
Therefore, they believe that peaceful means to solve the problem are the wiser and more effective option.
Although the United States** has given an explanation for not taking military action, the outside world has a different view.
Many believe that the response of the United States** is perceived as weak and does not reflect the strength and determination of the United States as a powerful nation.
Some political commentators believe that the United States made a mistake in handling the incident.
They believe that if the United States had acted more decisively and forcefully, it might have avoided some of the crises and conflicts that followed.
In addition, some argue that the United States** lacks determination and willpower to act, which has led to a tarnished image of the United States in the international community.
Although the United States did not retaliate against North Korea with direct military action, the measures it took still had an impact on relations between the two countries.
For example, the United States has suspended activities with North Korea, transportation and personnel exchanges, and has strengthened military deployments and combat readiness in the region, which has made relations between the two countries more strained.
And what the United States has done in the future proves that it is not as weak and incompetent as the outside world thinks.
After the downing of the US reconnaissance plane, Nixon also began to consider a tougher approach to dealing with the North Korean issue.
For example, in the late 70s of the 20th century, the United States provided significant military assistance to South Korea in order to support South Korea in countering the North Korean threat.
In addition, in the mid-80s of the 20th century, the United States also began to deploy nuclear ** in South Korea in an attempt to contain North Korea's behavior through nuclear deterrence.
These measures reflect the serious awareness and strong vigilance of the United States against the threat posed by the DPRK, and also demonstrate the determination of the United States to protect its own interests and security.
This incident has far-reaching implications, not only making the United States aware of the threat posed by North Korea in the region, but also prompting the United States to intervene and adjust in many fields such as politics, military, economy, and diplomacy to ensure its own interests and security.
Of course, the reasons that led the United States to "swallow its anger" in this incident are actually multifaceted, and we can analyze them from more angles.
First, the incident occurred at a time when the United States was involved in the Vietnam War
The Vietnam War was one of the most high-profile wars of the late 60s and early 70s of the 20th century.
During this time, the United States sent a large number of troops and resources to Vietnam in an attempt to curb the expansion of communism in the region.
However, the war caused widespread anti-war sentiment in the country and led to social and political aspects.
At the time, the United States** believed that retaliating against North Korea by military action could exacerbate anti-war sentiment at home and trigger greater social and political unrest.
If the United States wants to take action against North Korea, China is an important factor that the United States has to consider.
China is one of North Korea's main allies, and if the United States takes military action, it may cause strong resentment and opposition from China.
China** is likely to take countermeasures on a number of fronts, such as strengthening armaments, heightening vigilance, imposing economic sanctions on the United States, and so on.
And the "War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea" also left a historical shadow on the invincible US ** team.
As China's economic and military power has grown in recent years, China's influence has also grown in Asia
If the United States takes military action, it could cause regional instability and strengthen China's influence on the Korean Peninsula and Northeast Asia.
This could have a negative impact on the interests of the United States.
In fact, the United States really did not pay attention to North Korea, and what the Americans were afraid of was that China would take this opportunity to increase its influence.
Of course, the number one "imaginary enemy" of the United States at that time was not China, but the Soviet Union.
In 1945, after Japan's surrender, the Korean Peninsula was divided into two parts, North Korea and South Korea.
North Korea was supported by the Soviet Union, while South Korea was supported by the United States.
This division meant that the situation on the Korean Peninsula had become part of the US-Soviet struggle for hegemony.
If the United States rashly launches a war or strike against Korea, it may cause an imbalance between the United States and the Soviet Union in this region, which will lead to even greater disputes.
Due to the complexity and variability of the US-Soviet relationship, its impact on the situation on the Korean Peninsula is also constantly changing.
For example, in the early 1950s, the Soviet Union provided help in supporting North Korea, but in the late 1970s, the Soviet Union, together with China, tried to promote a diplomatic solution to the Korean Peninsula problem.
And in the 1980s, relations between the Soviet Union and China began to strain, and the United States tried to limit Soviet influence on the Korean Peninsula by cooperating with China.
The United States does not want multiple fronts to blossom at the same time, so it naturally postpones its "retaliation" against the DPRK.
The feud between the United States and North Korea continues to this day, and even more so after North Korea has a "nuclear **", and the United States is no longer taken into account - although it was not taken into account before.
As the "big brother" of North Korea, China is also in a dilemma.
On the one hand, China wants an "ally" like North Korea that dares to confront the United States, but North Korea seems too difficult to control, and it is right on China's border, and it cannot be beaten or scolded.
On the other hand, China still hopes for regional stability and harmony, and North Korea still needs to communicate more with North Korea's brain circuits to prevent it from really going too far.
ec-121 warning star." aewa. retrieved: 19 september 2009.
n korea in 'us spy plane' warning." bbc news, 11 june 2006.
Chun Byung-geun 69 reconnaissance plane shot down ** The United States wants to use nuclear weapons North Korea's ** Chinese network. 2010.06.25
Wikipedia: EC-121 downed incident.