Year: 2025
Type: article
Abstract: This study analyzed the military and security implications of Baengnyeong Airport. The island has been the northernmost outpost in the West Sea, amid prolonged strategic competition between the United States of America and China. The Northern Limit Line (NLL) and the five West Sea Islands provide naval and air force deployment and information, monitoring, and reconnaissance (ISR) bases in the early stages in the event of an emergency on the KADIZ(Korea Air Deffense Identification Zone), while also directly and indirectly influencing China's refusal to access the Yellow Sea (including Balhae alone)/regional rejection capability and expansion of gray area tactics. In particular, China's installation of fixed structures and large-scale aquaculture platforms in the 'Provisional Measures Zone (PMZ)' agreed upon by the Republic of Korea and China in the West Sea between 2024 and 2025 sparked legal and strategic debates over the interpretation of the existing management agreement, and moved the front line of maritime control, access, and surveillance competition north to the vicinity of Baengnyeong Island. This researcher proposed (1) the geopolitical and legal context of Baengnyeong Island, (2) the deterrence and response posture linked to the North Korean threat, (3) the spread of competition between the U.S. and China, (4) the conflict scenario and the deterrence and crisis management option, and (5) policy implications.
Authors: Sung Hwan Cho, Sung-Sik Park
Institution: Korea National University of Transportation
Language: English
Subfield: Aerospace Engineering
Field: Engineering
Domain: Physical Sciences
Open Access status: diamond
OpenAlex ID: W7125963049