Korea and the United States kicked off their joint maritime exercises near the Korean Peninsula on Monday, involving a US aircraft carrier and more than 20 warships from both sides.
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The four-day exercise kicked off in the East Sea with the presence of the nuclear-powered aircraft carrier USS Ronald Reagan to demonstrate the “strong will” of the South Korea-US alliance. and hone its military capabilities for combined operations, Navy officials said.
More than 20 warships will be mobilized for the maneuver, including a 7,600-ton Aegis destroyer and another 4,400-ton destroyer, both from the South Korean side, as well as the USS Ronald Reagan carrier strike group.
The drills came as Seoul and Washington are intensifying security cooperation, while North Korea has stated its opposition to such maneuvers because they threaten its national security.
North Korea fired an unspecified ballistic missile into the Sea of Japan, known as the East Sea, on Sunday, military sources in Seoul said.
In this Korean-American exercise, the strike group is comprised of the Nimitz-class nuclear-powered aircraft carrier, the USS Chancellorsville guided-missile cruiser, the USS Barry Arleigh Burke-class destroyer, as well as the USS Benfold guided-missile destroyer.
The nuclear-powered submarine USS Annapolis is also scheduled to take part in this naval exercise.
It is the first time in the past five years that a US aircraft carrier has visited Korea for joint military exercises.
Various aircraft and helicopters will join the naval exercises, including F/A-18E Super Hornets, P-3 and P-8 maritime surveillance aircraft, AW-159 and MH-60R helicopters, F-15K fighter jets and KF-16 and AH-64E Apache helicopters.
The combined naval forces of both countries will carry out various exercises related to anti-ship and anti-submarine operations, tactical maneuvers and other maritime operations.
The Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (DPRK) has denounced the joint exercise as a rehearsal to invade the North.